Trapped
by SpinoGuy Productions
Summary: Stryker wakes up in an abandoned hospital, beaten and bloodied. Where is he? What happened? And what else is there with him? Not a part of the MK Rebirth AU, although elements from that will show up.
1. Chapter 1

What…?

What the hell?

I find myself laying on the floor, in pain. A lot of pain. I feel something… warm pooling up beneath me. As I lift my face, I can feel something sticking to it. My hair is matted down, from either sweat or blood. I'm not entirely sure. I am, however, certain that I am still hurting. I let out some spit, but it doesn't taste quiet right.

I roll over to my back. My eyes finally open, but my eyelids feel so heavy. I just want to rest… just for a few seconds. I can't see much, only a basic outline of the room.

Yep. I am definitely covered in blood. I can also feel a sharp pain in my side. My hand moves to cover it, but I wince at the sudden increase in pain. Well, at the very least, now I know that some of the blood that's covering me is in fact mine. The wound's been bandaged, but the wrappings is rather damp. The bleeding has stopped, thankfully.

Where am I, anyway?

I attempt, key word there being "attempt," to get to my feet, but I immediately crash to the floor. I'm fairly certain a couple of my bones are—ngh—broken. I try to make a fist with both hands. Okay, right hand's good. A little sore, but I'll manage. Left han—Argh!

Nope. That's useless. Beautiful.

First order of business, figure out where I am. Using my good arm, I crawl over to the nearest desk. Once there, I grab onto the edge, hoping to use it as leverage so I can actually stand up. My hand slips on some blood, so I fall back to the ground.

But I will not be—ouch—deterred. I grip the edge again, this time succeeded in leaning against it. I have to find something, anything that will give me a clue as to where exactly I am. Most of the papers are covered in blood, no surprises, but I do find one that's at least partially free of the dampness.

My eyes skim over it, but it gives me no clues. I crumple it up into a ball before throwing it.

Well, that was a waste of time. Alright time to m-move one to someplace… my side really hurts. I take a few timid steps forward, afraid that I'll just face plant onto the ground. Turns out, I do exactly that. I can make out a table nearby. I reach out to take hold of it, but all that did was bring down the table with me.

A dish fell onto my head, with tools following it. I protect my wound from the metal objects, but the rest of my body doesn't fare so well. They bounce relatively harmlessly off me. Wait a sec… the tools… My hand reaches out for one of them. A scalpel? My vision finally begins to get used to the darkness, before I lay my eyes upon…

A hospital room? Why am I in a hospital?

My eyesight is getting back up to strength, as I can see another person in this room with me.

Well, a corpse, anyway.

I use the bed to get to my feet, hopefully for good this time, as I take a peek into the large hole in its chest. It's been mutilated. The chest cut open, its insides torn out, almost all vital organs gone, ribs missing, and several vertebrae joining them. I knew the guy wasn't exactly alive, but I can't even seem to find the heart itself. Hell, I'm certain some of the veins are missing too, based on what I'm seeing.

"My God," slips out of my mouth. I didn't try to. I don't like talking to myself, but this is just… Who would do something like this?

A noise draws my attention, causing my head to snap to the right. The rummaging continues. I pull out my pistol, walking, or rather, limping towards the room's exit. I fall against a wall to catch my breath before pushing off it and walking into the wall just outside the room. There's a sign.

Elevators to the… right. Same direction as the noises. Great. Just what I needed.

I almost begrudgingly move towards the elevators, holding onto my pistol for dear life. I placed myself against a wall, and peeked around the corner, breathing heavily. I can't seem to find anybody, but I know something is definitely out there. But what?

Whatever it is, I don't want to meet it. But I probably am going to have to. Joyous of occasions. Using the nearest wall as support, I limp over to the nearest elevator. Before I can get too close, I smell something. And it smells like something is… burning.

Off to my left, I can feel the heat of its entrance. A fiery explosion make its presence known as it throws me against the opposite wall. After hitting the back of my head, I slide down to where I'm sitting against the wall. I see a figure emerging in the fire, walking slowly towards me.

I'm… I'm too weak. I can't even begin to—Oh, there goes a rib.

The figure let the chain it was holding, which I noted had a spear head on the end, loosen as it makes it was closer. I can feel unconsciousness slowly creeping up on me. I think I might have a concussion. The only details I can make out from this creature are the pure white eyes, a bit of yellow on its chest, and a masked face. It looks somewhat human, but with the fact that it is both on fire and not flinching, I'm just going to assume that it's not.

I let myself fall onto my side as I begin to crawl away, but my wounds… they just won't let me. Just before it can reach me, several gunshots go off, followed by a pure, animalistic growl. The heat emanated by the creature slowly goes away, before someone's footsteps come into my area.

The person walks up to me, saying something. I don't catch what he says, exactly, but I can tell that it's a male. I see him putting the gun he used into its holster. I can also see he has a blindfold and a sword.

He helps me to my feet before throwing my right arm over his shoulder, steadying me. Just before I fall into unconsciousness, a single thought permeates my mind.

What the hell happened?


	2. Chapter 2

Twelve hours ago.

My name is Kurtis Stryker.

I'm a police officer with the New York City Police Department.

That's all you really need to know about me at this moment in time. What you are probably wondering is what the hell was going on with the hospital? Right now? I'm looking for those answers too. So, let me take you on a crash course of how we got to here.

Twelve hours ago, I was walking a beat with my partner and best friend, Kenshi Takashi. The thing about Kenshi is that he's blind. He doesn't even try to hide it, since he always wears a dark red blindfold. But don't let that fool you. He can fight with the best of them. Sometimes, I think he can see the world better than most of us can. He claims it's all about training your senses, but I have a distinct feeling that sword helps him. The one thing we agreed on when we were first assigned as partners is that we would never talk about the sword.

Fair enough, probably has some emotional attachment to it. All I know is that the reason he is blind is because he has it. Or, maybe it's the other way around. Like I said, I don't know much. Despite that little hand wave, we've come to know each other quite well. When I found out that he was living on the streets, I offered him to stay at my apartment, as long as he paid some rent. He agreed, and the rest is history.

Anyway, we were walking the beat, talking about random things. "Okay, so, you know how everyone says that Batman can beat Superman with enough preparation time?" I ask, taking a sip from my cup of coffee.

…What? I like comic books, sue me.

Kenshi hums in agreement while biting down on his hot dog.

"But here's the thing, Superman is pretty much a God. How could Batman plan around that?"

My friend tilts his head. "Where exactly has it said that Batman can beat Superman?"

"It's from a story arc in the eighties called _The Dark Knight Returns._ Amazing story, but I think the writer eventually went insane. Anyway, in it, Superman gets nuked and Batman takes advantage and keeps Superman busy long enough for his master plan to be enacted."

"Well, there's your answer."

"Huh?"

"Batman did not beat Superman. Sure, he held him back for a little while, an impressive feat in its own, but did he actually keep Superman down for the count? No. And was he alone?"

"No, actually. He had help from Robin and Green Arrow." I finish off my coffee and look into the empty cup. "He still planned it."

"But he didn't win, he fought to a standstill."

"To be fair, Bats needed a walking hospital bed to keep his insides from going onto his outsides."

Kenshi's face twisted in disgust. "That's a mental image I didn't need, thank you very much." He went silent for a few seconds. "What was the point of this conversation again?"

"Hmm? Oh, right. How could a mere mortal beat a God? It just doesn't make sense." I shake my head. "The wonders of fiction. You ever think we're in a book or something?"

"Don't be ridiculous, Kurt," Kenshi replied. "Besides, I'm sure there are humans out there who can outthink a God. Like Steven Hawking."

"Or Chuck Norris," I add, throwing my disposable cup into the nearest trash can. Try to, anyway, as I narrowly miss. "That man can do anything."

I can hear Kenshi rolling his eyes underneath that blindfold of his. "That man is not as cool as you think. Isn't he in his seventies?"

"What, would _you_ try to fight him?"

" _Why_ would I be fighting Chuck Norris?" There's that eye roll again.

"I don't know," I cry out in exasperation. "We're just talking hypothetical here. So, would you?"

"I have a sword, the ability to move things with my mind, immune to attacks directing the eye and all he has is his… fist?"

"Yep."

"I think I would bet for me, yes."

I know, I know, you're probably asking yourself, "What does this have to do with the hospital?" Nothing, but it's my story and I'm going to tell it how I like to. 'Kay? Plus this will eventually lead to…

"Alright suit your-." My communicator starts to buzz. "Hold on." I lean into my shoulder and ask, "This is Officer Stryker."

"Officer Stryker, we need you to take a look at a local disturbance. We see that you are near."

Kenshi and I share a look. "What's the disturbance about?"

"Reports of a fight going on that needs to be broken up. We're sending you the coordinates now." I receive the information.

"Thanks, dispatch. We're on our way. Styrker out." I place my communicator back in its pouch before looking to Kenshi. "What do you think?"

"I think it's fairly obvious," he says.

"Yeah?"

"We do our jobs." He turns his head towards the nearest trash can, tossing the rest of his hot dog into the trash perfectly. "Where is it?"

I take a moment to marvel at Kenshi's precision before point forward. "This way," I reply, before moving on. Kenshi followed wordlessly.


	3. Chapter 3

Eleven and a half hours ago.

You know, of all the places I could be, the East End is most assuredly not on the top of my list. This place is a hell hole. Crime, drugs trafficking, you name it, the illegal activity is probably being committed right now. The thing is, there are so many illegal activities going on in this end that we can't possibly hope to get to it all, so we pick and choose which call we respond to.

Not sure why this one is so important. A fight? Those happen all the time, even in the good neighborhoods. For all we know, it's probably just a group of kids horsing around or some kind of gang initiation that I would rather not get involved with. But then again, I haven't experienced any action in a while and this would be a perfect chance to do it legally. That is, if they resist. I'm an honest cop, I won't start fights that don't need started, but man… I love a good scrape every now and again.

I'm getting off topic aren't I? Sorry, sorry, it's just… I like to think inside of my head like this. Gets some thoughts out of my head. That and I can hardly talk to Kenshi about this stuff right? Not that we can't hold a conversation, but sometimes I think that we've run out of things to talk about in the five years we've been partners. Hence we were discussing Batman's chances against Superman and Chuck Norris. We go on some pretty bizarre tangents, don't we?

I digress.

So, me and Kenshi walk towards the location that dispatch had, well, dispatched us to. "I just don't get it," I say, rubbing my gloved hand through my hair. "What makes this so special that we have to come all the way here to this godforsaken place?"

"You really don't like being here, do you?" Kenshi asks, raising an eyebrow and planting a dumb smirk on his dumb face.

I cross my arms and huff. "No, I don't. Getting jumped is not of today's to-do list. In fact, it goes a little like this: get up, walk my beat with Kenshi, _not_ get jumped and potentially robbed, go home, eat, and then go to bed. Is that too much to ask?"

"In a town like this? Yes, yes it is," my friend states for the record.

Can't say I disagree with him. Doesn't mean I have to like it.

I give a sarcastic laugh sarcastically. "Ha ha ha. Funny."

"Would you mind filling me in on the details of this disturbance, Kurt, or are you just going to whine until we get there?"

I raise an eybrow. "I'm rather partial to whining myself." A withered glance from Kenshi causes me to sigh in defeat. "Alright, fine." Pulling up my phone, I read through the list. "Hmm. Not a whole lot of details. Neighbors report a bunch of noises coming from the apartment. Glass shattering, furniture being thrown and…" I pause at this new bit of info.

"And what?" Kenshi asks, stopping with me.

"Screams." I glance over at him. "Lots of screaming."

"So? It's a fight, people are bound to scream in pain."

I shake my head in denial. "According to the reports, it wasn't in pain. It sounded like it was screaming in _terror._ "

A raised eyebrow is the only response I get from Kenshi. Let me tell you, he is no stranger to the, well, strange. After all, I've seen him shrug stuff off that will make your or my mind explode with trying to figure out what was going on. Nothing really fazes him. So when he raises an eyebrow in confusion like that, it gets me worried. Well, more than I already am.

Maybe there was a particular reason we were sent here.

"Alright," I say, placing the information in one of my pouches. "Let's get this done with. I don't like being here."

Well, that eyebrow raise I know all too well.

After a few minutes, we get to the address. Seems to be an average apartment. A few people are entering and/or leaving when we walk in. As soon as we do, we get a couple glares. Must not like cops, the jerks. Not that I can blame 'em. Most other cops have a tendency to go a little overboard when it comes to dealing out justice, something Kenshi knows about.

I doubt that guy's face will heal correctly ever again. To be fair, he was trying to assault a newly wedded couple. Still…

We walk up to the receptionist, who simply points up the stairs and says, "Fourth floor, room 4B."

Kenshi nods and I offer a, "Thanks." We enter the elevator with two other people, a man and a woman. Who also has a child. Who just started screaming at the sight of us. Great.

The next minute or so is rather awkward, as the child is still screaming and the man is giving us a death glare. Let me tell you, if looks could kill, Kenshi and I would be six feet under. At least the music's catchy.

Since I rather enjoy this song, I start humming along. " _Lately I been, I been losing sleep. Dreaming about the things that we could be. Baby, I been, I been praying hard. Said no more counting, we'll be counting stars…"_

I receive a sideways glance from Kenshi. The door opens and we step out as quickly as we can. I wipe off my shirt and say, "Well, that was _pleasant._ "

"Well, maybe if you hadn't started singing…" Kenshi mentions offhandedly, moving towards the room.

I rolls my eyes. "Well, I can hardly help it if my mind wants to groove."

"Please tell me you did not just use the word 'groove' unironically?" my friend begs, with an almost pleading look on his face.

Patting him on the shoulder I reassure him, "Wish I could, partner. Wish I could."

We get to room 4B before I look to Kenshi. "Should we knock?"

"No, we should just sit out here and wait for them to come crashing through the door."

"Haha, smartass," I shoot back. I knock a few times on the door. "You know, sarcasm is very unbecoming of-."

When the door opens, I stop. It was open? Why the hell…? Never mind. I keep my hand on my gun before stepping into the apartment. Okay, the living room, or what I assume to be the living room, is empty. So's the kitchen.

"Kenshi, check the bathroom," I commanded, moving further into the living room. Kenshi did so wordlessly.

I move into the only other room left. The bedroom. I turn the handle, but the room is rather dark. Odd, since it was day out. Although the blinds are shut. I flip the nearest switch, turning the lights on. My eyes go wide at the revelation.

Three or four, maybe five, dead bodies, completely torn apart. Like I said, I'm not sure since there's only one person who looks somewhat whole. Still missing a limb, but at least it looks like there was one person in this room. The rest of the place doesn't fare much better, as it is covered floor to ceiling in blood. The light casts the room in a red hue. I doubt the bulb is a naturally red color.

I hear Kenshi step behind me, asking, "Is that what I think it is?"

"Yeah." Turning around so I no longer have to look at it, I place my hand over my mouth. "I'm kind of glad you can't see right now."

He only nodded. "What happened here?"

"I have no idea." That's the only answer I can give. I've been on the force for almost ten years now, and I've never seen something like… like this. I've seen murders. I've seen rapes. But this isn't a beating. This isn't a fight. This isn't even a murder.

This is a massacre.

"Call it in," Kenshi states, still focused on the room.

I look back and nod while taking out my communicator. "Dispatch, do you read?"

No answer.

"I repeat, Dispatch, do you copy?"

Silence.

Kenshi has turned to face me. He doesn't have to ask. "I can't get a response," I mutter. I look towards the door we entered through. "Did you close the door?"

"No, why?"

"Because I sure as hell didn't."

I run over and try to open it, but I have no success. "Stand back," I warn while backing up. Kenshi does the same. I use my right leg to kick the door off its hinges. It doesn't budge. I do fall flat on my back, though. "What the hell?"

"Let me try," Kenshi states, pulling out his sword. He levels it with the crack in the door before making a stab at the lock. It bounces right off, sending him back and the sword stabbing into the floor. He sits up before stating, "That was supposed to work."

We both get to our feet. Glancing at each other for a split second, we both try to kick the door in, but again, it doesn't work. Finally, I pull out my gun and shoot the lock. The bullet bounces off of it and comes soaring towards me. I duck just in time to avoid death by bullet. Kenshi had shielded himself with his arms, covering his face.

Finally I suggest, "Maybe we aren't getting out of here?"

"I'll try the window," Kenshi adds.

I nod and open my mouth to say something, but a noise get my attention. My head turns to view Kenshi knocked unconscious and a black shadow standing over him. At least, that's what I think it was. How else would you describe a pitch black person?

What a generous person could describe as a face turns towards me, my gun raising to fire on it, but I only get off one shot before it pounces on me.

It opens its arms and blackness fills my vision. Next thing I know, I'm lying in a puddle of my own blood.


	4. Chapter 4

"—ou okay? Kurtis, you need to wake up."

Owww… my head. Alright, give me a minute to compose myself.

Okay, so now you kind of get the idea of how we got to the hospital. Still lost on how I woke up beaten and bloodied? Don't worry, I'm still trying to figure that out. We can learn together! How's that sound? Alright, now I'm just rambling. Again. Moving on…

My eyes slowly open, yet my vision has blurred. I could hardly make out basic details and shapes. But I could see that someone was moving. I heard him alright though. Kenshi must've been the one to help with that creature.

I groan softly before asking, "What the hell happened?"

Kenshi sighed with relief before replying. "You were attacked. So I had to save your sorry ass and drag you over here."

Making sure to nod in appreciation, I attempt to get to my feet before a hand on my shoulder stops me. I look up at my friend, who is shaking his head. "You're too badly injured to move. I have no idea what that thing did to you, but I don't want you dying on me."

"Alright." I slid back down, before placing a hand over the wound on my chest. I shake the remaining dizziness off before looking around. "Where are we?"

"I think it's a cafeteria," Kenshi stated, getting up to his feet. His head moved to the left and right. "Not quite sure. Didn't have enough time to feel the sign for brail." He sniffed. "Smells like hospital food, anyway."

I wave him off. "No, I mean, where _are_ we? Are we even _in_ New York anymore?"

Kenshi doesn't immediately answer. Sweat begins to pour down my face. Well, more than there already was, I should say. When he finally answers, I honestly wish he hadn't. "I don't know how to say this, Kurt," he states. "I honestly have no idea."

My eyes widen. "None?" Kenshi nods wordlessly. "You can't feel anyone's, I don't know, presence or something outside?"

He shakes his head. "It's just you, me, and… something else."

"What'd you mean?"

"I don't know how to explain it. It's like this entire place is inhabited by a dark force, cutting off my access to the outside world."

My hand reaches for my communicator, only to discover it was gone. "Who the hell would bring two random New York cops to some haunted hospital?" I ask myself.

"Who knows?" Kenshi shrugs. "All I know is that I want out of this nightmare."

I then notice something. "Kenshi, did you wake up in a pool of your own blood?"

His head tilts. "No. Did you?" I nod. "So, those injuries of yours weren't sustained by the man of fire, huh? Someone else is in here."

"Or, I survived an earlier attack," I add. "There is always that possibility."

I know it's a foolish thing to say. That… thing wouldn't have spared me. I'm surprised I even survived one encounter with the creature. There was also a lack of burns on me. I'm sure it would've attempted to use fire to incapacitate me. It's what I'd do. But, unfortunately, I don't have magical fire bending abilities, so I'm stuck with my brains and brawn.

Not that it did a whole lot of good, apparently.

My friend seems to agree with me with a nod. Pulling out his sword wordlessly, he pulls out his service pistol and gives it to me. He offers me a smile before saying, "For extra support."

"Where are you going?" I ask.

He gets down to eye level with me, even though it's useless. Probably just to put us on equal ground. "Going to look around this place. Don't worry, I'm not going to leave this floor. I'll come back to pick you up before I do, okay?" Placing a reassuring hand on my shoulder, he continues. "I promise."

Chuckling lightly, I brush his hand off. "Alright, alright. Now get out of here before I kick you out myself, got it?" He nods before getting to his feet and running out the door.

My line of sight follows him before looking straight ahead. You know, I just noticed something that I really hadn't thought about until now.

I'm really tired.

I lean my head back against the wall and close my eyes for a few minutes.

Yeah, just for a… a few… minutes…

…

* * *

 **A/N:** Alright, just a quick little note for those of you who may or may not be confused.

This does not have any connection whatsoever to my MK Rebirth AU. That is why New York is still New York, Scorpion is just a mindless monster instead of the character I made him, and why Kenshi, spoilers, alive.

Hope that helped.

Spino, out.


	5. Chapter 5

A few objects fall, clanging to the ground. It stirs me from my sleep. I look up towards the clock. Fifteen minutes? I've only been asleep for fifteen minutes? You've got to be kidding me.

I place a hand over my wound. It still stings, but it's a bit more bearable. I try to get to my feet before falling back down. Well, that's still going to be a problem. Just going to have to wait until Kenshi gets back. Great. I'm not really used to being the damsel in distress. Not really sure what to do until he comes back.

The clanging returns, followed by a quiet, "Damn!"

Crap, now I remember what happened. I pull out my gun and get to my feet. Slowly and using the wall as support, but I'm able to do it. The noise happens again, cueing me into the direction of the intruder. To the front right. I walk, and by "walk" I mean "stumble," over to the intruder's area. I see a man wearing a hospital gown and bandages wrapped around his head. Otherwise he's wearing nothing else.

I aim my gun to his head and pull back the hammer. He stops cold. "Turn around," I command, doing my best to be intimidating in my current position.

He does as I say, but his reaction is about what I expected. A mix of confusion and amusement. A slight smile flashes across his face, but it's gone as quickly as it showed up. It instead replaces with worry since even though I am an injured man, I am an injured man _with a gun._ So, he holds up his hands and backs away slowly.

We stand in silence for a second. "Who are you?" I ask.

He stood still for a second. Then he moved his hand to his chest and claimed, "My name is… Adam. You can call me Adam."

So there is someone else here. But why?

"Might I ask who you are?" Adam seemed hesitant in asking. Not surprising, as he probably didn't want to be shot in the face.

My eyes narrow. Can't give this guy my full name. Don't even know if I can trust him. "Stryker," is all I say. He raises an eyebrow. "I didn't choose it. What are you doing?"

"I come down here every day to get supplies," Adam replies, rubbing his hands nervously. He looks behind him. "It's the only time where I can really move about freely, you know."

Now it's my turn to raise an eyebrow. "Come again?"

"There are things out there," Adam stated. "They hunt us. Make it impossible for us to escape. So I do the best I can do to simply survive. I only have another hour until they start looking, so I would very much like to get back to my hiding spot."

I step forward, but for some reason my body decided to give out as I fell to the group. Adam must've stepped out to catch my fall since I didn't land flat on my face. My gun falls from my hand, but I don't bother to try to catch it.

Adam positions me up against the wall, before handing me back my gun. He crouches down before shaking his head. "You're in no position to run around in this place alone." Turning his head so he was looking behind him, he continued. "Look, you can come stay with me. I have more than enough food and water for you until you get back to your feet. How does that sound?"

"No…"

"What?"

"Not without Kenshi."

He's my best friend. I can't leave him behind. Not after he just saved me.

I tried to get to my feet, but a hand on my shoulder put me back down. I looked up at Adam, who seemed conflicted.

Can't really blame him. This guy has probably been surviving here for a long time, based on the scars I can see and the fact that he knows the times that are safe to move about. Probably doesn't want to wait around for a little while longer before some guy's friend who's he has never met shows up. If I was him, I'd leave the guy. Then again, I'm not him. I'm me. I wouldn't leave someone.

Then he surprised me. "Alright, alright." He then walked over to a nearby table and sat down. "I'll give this friend of yours ten minutes. No more, no less. Got it?" I nod. "Alright then. Ten minutes."

With that out of the way, I lean my head back. It's going to be a long ten minutes and I want to get some shut eye. I shouldn't, though. I need to be awake and alert in this hell hole. But my mind traveled back to that body I saw on the hospital bed.

Could that creature have gutted him? Not out of the question. Who knows what that thing wanted? Hell, it could have been the one to bring us here, but I only remember a shadow. So my word really doesn't mean a whole lot in this regard.

But why us? Why Kenshi and I? Do we have a part in this place? _What_ is this place? I've seen a lot of blood, both wet and dried, plus myself covered in my own blood. I have not, however, seen a single hospital worker, be it a doctor or a nurse. So that just begs the question.

Where are they?

Questions for later, I think. Maybe Adam has an idea. Anyways, I'm a little tired. A ten minute nap might do the body good.


	6. Chapter 6

It's always a bad thing when someone shakes you awake. Even when it's for a rather important event that you need to get to. Why is that a bad thing? It wakes you up from that dream with the swimsuit model or the fact that you're at a Twins game and they're actually winning. Why is it so bad this time?

Because I was having a dream where I was anywhere but here.

Now I'm back to reality, realizing I'm trapped in some hospital where more than a few nutjobs are trying to kill my best friend and I, the only possible ally is some guy named Adam who is more than likely insane, and I've been horribly injured.

You can see why I don't want to wake up. Unfortunately, there are a lot of things we don't want to do. Like die and pay taxes. But we have to do those. Well, some people want to die. More power to them since they are seriously killing the mood. I'm sorry, that was in poor taste, but that doesn't matter. The point is that we have to do things we don't like.

Getting up is one them. Especially when it's to an ugly face like Kenshi's. I could hear his voice fading in. "-ome on. Get up, already, we have to leave."

My eyes fluttered open. I then immediately shut them when I saw a flashlight in my face. My arm goes up to my face, groaning to myself. "Turn the light off," I moan.

Kenshi turns his light off and sticks it in his belt. "Yeah, he's fine." He then takes my arm and throws it over his shoulder, getting me to my feet. He stumbled a bit due to my weight before getting his bearings. He told Adam, who was looking even more nervous than before, "We should get moving."

"Hurry up, we only have about twenty minutes to get back," Adam replied, already out the door.

Kenshi was following him, but something hadn't clicked in my mind. Twenty minutes? "I thought he only gave you ten minutes to get back here," I mentioned.

"We talked," Kenshi stated. I stared at him for a moment. "About this place."

"What does he know about it?"

"Not much more than us. Only the patterns of that creature patrolling this place." He took in a rattled breath. "And that some poor soul is brought here every so often."

"How often?" I asked, placing my free hand on my wound.

"Once every few weeks or so."

I raised an eyebrow. "How long has he been here?"

He shrugged. "Didn't ask. Now stop slouching, I can barely handle your weight as it is."

I readjusted my weight while mulling over Kenshi's words. Adam had been able to figure out patterns, times, possibly even dates. That just begs the question I just asked. In order for him to get an idea, he's had to have been here for at least a few months, if not years.

It's not out of the question, I supposed. He has scars all over his body and that's probably the reason his face is bandaged up. Still, he has to know more about this place… right?

After we had exited the cafeteria, Adam was already at the end of the hallway. He was looking around the corner, signaling us to follow him. I told Kenshi this as we followed the man. The place was bare. There was nothing, except the splatter of the blood.

It would've been less creepy had there been screaming, but now? With everything all quiet? I have never not wanted to be in a hospital this much in my entire life, and that was saying something. The first time I broke my arm I cried more in the hospital than I did when I actually broke the bone. I was six, what do you expect me to do? Keep a stiff upper lip?

Since then I've been more than willing to go in for a checkup every now and then, but I still don't like it. Now though… I would like nothing more than to just leave. Possibly while screaming like a little girl. Scratch that possibly. I would absolutely be screaming like a little girl.

As we moved along the abandoned hallways, I stepped on something wet. Kenshi must have heard it too, as he stopped so that I could look. It was most definitely a puddle of blood, but it seemed to be leading somewhere. It was fresh too.

Adam soon caught wind of us stopping, so he turned around and called out, "Will you hurry up? We're losing time." He waited for us to move, however. Strength in numbers, I gather.

Patting Kenshi's chest, he moved along. I keep pace as much as I could, but it still hurt like a bitch. After a while, possibly the entirety of the twenty minutes, we reached Adam standing in front of a grate. He motioned Kenshi over. I had to tell Kenshi to help out Adam with whatever it was he needed.

I watch as they pull the grate off, and Adam crawled in. Kenshi and I share a look. Were we really going to crawl into a vent? Is it event going to support our weight? It was either this or death by demon. Kenshi assisted me in getting to the vent. I said to him, "Go. I'll watch your back."

He climbed in next. I followed. I also made sure to close the grate behind me. Then I found out my estimate of the passage of time was correct. Twenty minutes really had passed. In the abandoned hallway, something dropped down from the ceiling. It was rather impressive. When the creature landed, it caused some cracks in the floor.

The creature got to its full height, and I was now able to make out some more details. It defiantly looked human, aside from the white eyes. Now that I look at it, it looked like some sort of ninja. On fire. It stood still for a moment before moving on, flames remaining where it stepped. After it was out of view, I turned around and followed Kenshi and Adam down the vent. We were safe.

At least, I hope we are.


	7. Chapter 7

This vent is really stuffy.

It smells like… a really stuffy vent. Look, I don't know how to explain it, just go with it. We've been crawling for a few minutes in this tight vent. Don't know how Adam does this on a daily basis, but he claims he has to.

I'm not entirely sure I believe that he does this kind of thing daily. Maybe weekly.

Grr. I'm rambling again. Sorry. It helps take the mind off the pain in my side. And shoulders. And arms. Everything, really. Ow.

After about five minutes, I see Adam motioning for me and Kenshi to stop. I have to pull on Kenshi's leg. He points to a grate that was put on the bottom of the vent. He kicks it open and drops into the room. Kenshi does the same and I soon follow. I felt like someone was helping me, although I know no one moved. I could see a blue glow around Kenshi's head, so I guess there's the answer to that.

When I landed on the floor I got my first chance to look at the room we were in. It was repurposed from a normal hospital room but the door appeared to be bolted and welded shut. With a shelf in front of it. Well, at least he's prepared. I ask him, "Are you sure that's secured?"

"I made sure to hide the other side of the door my first day here," Adam replied, taking out a bottle of water. "It's important to find a place to defend should things go bad."

"How long is that thing going to be out there?" Kenshi asked, pointing outside.

"Usually a good twenty-two hours of the day. Maybe more depending on how eager it is to kill something. It's pretty good on keeping to a tight schedule, though."

"Why only twenty-two hours?" I ask through the pain.

"Because the other one has to locate other people and bring them here."

"Other one?" I parrot. Weird. Been doing that a lot lately.

"Oh, yes," he states coolly, bringing out a needle. "That man on fire, whatever it is, is somehow bound to the hospital. It can't leave. So it becomes agitated. Everyday at around this time, the other guy, the shadow, finds people. Mostly drifters, drunks, people nobody'd pay any attention to if they went missing."

Kenshi scratched his chin before asking, "But why us, then? We're cops. Surely we must've been reported as missing soon."

"Because, my blind friend, you stumbled onto his 'play time.'" I'm not joking about those air quotes, he actually made those. I can now see he pulled out a syringe and was doing that thing doctors do with the needle before they inject someone.

"From what I gather, which isn't much mind you, he doesn't get to patrol these halls. It's just the man on fire." He shrugs. "So, I'm guessing you stumbled onto a massacre and he took you so you wouldn't, I don't know, tell anybody. Or something of that sort."

"That explains why I couldn't kick the door down," I mumble just loud enough for Kenshi to hear. "Still, what I want to know is how-Ow!"

Ouch! I looked at Adam who just injected me with something. I push him off. Who the hell just sticks a person with a needle? More importantly…

"What the hell was that?!" I shout, getting to my feet. I grab at the spot where he stabbed me.

"Just a little epinephrine," he states, putting the syringe away.

"Adrenaline?" I ask incredulously. "You injected me with adrenaline? Why?"

"It'll help manage the pain of your injuries," he mentions. I catch a bottle of water he tosses me. "It wasn't much, just in case your body doesn't react well to the drug."

Rubbing my shoulder absently, I ask, "Then why do I still feel like crap?"

"It'll take a little while before it kicks in," Adam replies. He takes out another syringe and points it at Kenshi. "Want some too, blind man?"

"I'll pass," my friend states, pulling out his sword. "I'll take first watch."

"I'm not going to bed anytime soon," Adam comments. "I would ask if you guys want anything to eat, but I was kind of interrupted on my supply run. Sorry."

Kenshi ignored him and sat down cross-legged in a shadowed corner. Always was one to stick to himself. Adam sat down on a chair and pulled out a book. I maneuvered my neck to get a better view on what it was.

I lay my head back in hopes to fall into unconsciousness for the third time in less than an hour.

In the background, I could hear something stomping along the halls, fire cackling along with it. Doesn't matter, I guess. If Adam's been here for as long as I think he has, we'll be fine.

Yeah.

We'll be fine.


	8. Chapter 8

Funny thing about trying to sleep right after getting a shot of adrenaline pumped into your system. It's not easy. Hell, the action of getting the shot is enough to keep me awake. But I can feel it working its way into my system. I'll probably be bouncing off the walls in a few minutes.

So I'm taking these few minutes of peace to rest. At the very least I'm not feeling like crap anymore. I probably should be thankful Adam didn't give me any morphine. I'd be out like a light at this rate. I get to my feet and look over to Kenshi, who's still doing his meditation thing. Sometimes I wish I could join him, just to get a feeling for what that's like. Must be relaxing.

I make my way over to the small hole in the wall to take a peek outside. So far nothing's out of the ordinary. All I can see is the hallway stained with blood. My upper lip briefly twitches into a snarl. I almost don't want to know what happened here. I let out a sigh before moving away.

Wait… what was that?

Movement caught the attention of my eye, so I peered through the hole again.

Hmm. Must've been nothing.

A scowling face appears, staring back at me. I jump back, almost falling over. I place my hand on Adam's shoulder and shake him awake. He shakes his head before asking, "What is it?"

"There's something out there."

"So? They pass by every now and then."

"He was staring back at me."

That got his attention. He jumped to his feet turning his attention towards the doorway. "Which one was it?"

"The fire guy. Who else would it be?" I ask. Not getting an answer, I tap Kenshi so he gets to his feet.

Pulling out my pistol and taking the safety off, I ask, "Any ideas that might save our asses?"

Adam shakes his head. Before the next event, I hear him state, plain as day, "We're screwed.

The wall explodes into a pile of rubble, and in stepped the creature I saw before. With my vision cleared up, I could see it quite plainly now. The yellow mask, the piercing white eyes that, even without pupils or irises, stared into my very soul. If there was ever a time to pray, now would be it.

The creature lifted an arm, sending a fire ball directly at Adam. It sent him back into the opposite wall. Kenshi whipped out his sword and dived after the creature, but a backhand sent him into the other wall. I raised my gun and fired three bullets into his its chest. He stopped and crouched to one knee... then got right back up and continued his way towards Adam.

I let my gun droop a little in disbelief, but quickly bring it back up and empty the clip into this thing. It barely slows it down. Well, actually, that's not true. Now it's glaring at me.

Joy.

I holster my gun before looking around for anything to throw at it. I see the book Adam was reading before and thought, _What the hell?_

I grab it and lobbed it as hard as I can. The book smacks into the creature's face. Wow. Who knew getting hit with a book hurt less than bullets?

I get backed into a corner and started grabbing anything and everything I can find and throw it at him. I notice a bed pan, a bowl, a couple needles, hopefully all of which aren't used.

Everything bounces harmlessly off the creature's body, which hardly flinched at the impacts. Okay, now I'm out of ideas. That and a disagreeing sensation, better described as pain, is slowly creeping up on me. And right now, I would really like it to stop so I can focus on the demon in front of me!

It reaches out for my throat, but some quick reflexes and a lot of luck allow me to duck out of the way. I used this opportunity to send a fist into its side. A fun fact that I will share with the world. Never, and I do mean _never,_ try to punch something that is currently on fire. It will not end well for you.

Unfortunately, I didn't take my own advice. Ah, the benefit of hindsight.

Ouchouchouchouchouchouchouchouchouchouchouch!

Rolling back, I fan my hand, cooling it off. Alright, note to self, never punch a guy made of fire- Oh, right, he's still here. My eyes meet it as its eyes pierce my very soul.

Its hand reaches out to grab me. I'm going to die. I just know it. I never thought I'd be dying in a hospital with my friend, a guy in bandages, and a demon thing. Gotta say, there are better ways to go out. Granted, there are far worse. Its fingers almost around my neck. I really don't want to die. I don't want to die. Please don't let me-

Huh? It just... stopped. As if it was frozen? Well... I'll take it. I dive out of the way as the thing is thrown towards the wall. I glance at Kenshi, who's head was surrounded by a blue glow. His face is all scrunched up, probably from overexertion. Idiot. I keep telling him that using that stuff hurts him, but in this situation, I'll just keep mum about that.

Kenshi grabs my hand and lifts me to my feet. "That won't keep him down for long."

Adam pushes us out of the room, affirming, "That won't keep him down at all. Move!"

And we do just that. All three of us sprint out the door, wasting no time in getting away from the big scary man. From behind us, I can hear him crashing through another wall as if there wasn't a hole in one already.

Just as we round the corner, Adam opens a door, pushes us in, and quietly, but quickly shuts it. He motioned us to the ground, lying as flat as he could. Kenshi and I did the same.

We sat there quietly as I heard footsteps cross the hallway. It stopped just in front of our door.

I felt a bead of sweat roll down my cheek. I could hear Adam's intense breathing fill the room. Kenshi readied his blade for any trouble.

After a few seconds, the footsteps moved onto another direction. Either it found what it was looking for or it just got bored. I honestly hope it was the former.

After we could no longer hear the creature, Adam moved to the bathroom. He waved us over. I gave Kenshi a pat on the pack to help him move in the direction where he was supposed to. We all got into the rather roomy bathroom, eliciting a remark from me.

"Why would a hospital need bathrooms this big?"

"Be thankful that we're not pressed up against each other. We need a plan," Kenshi replied.

"The plan is, was, and always will be to survive," Adam stated, massaging his knuckles.

"That's going to be a bit difficult without another place to hide," I reply, placing another magazine in my gun. "You wouldn't happen to know any other place we can hide?"

Adam shook his head. "That was the only place they never checked. I've never had any reason to go above or below this floor."

"So you never tried to escape? Even though you knew survival is a virtual impossibility?" Kenshi snapped. I noticed his hand was clenched into a fist and a slight blue appearing around it. I remembered to back up a little bit when he got like this. Getting hit in the head with a flying object was no fun, let me tell you.

"I'm sorry!" Adam shouted. "Have you survived in this place for two years with little food and water, with only your wits to survive? No? Then you have no place to judge me!"

Alright, this was getting a little loud. I stepped in between them. "Guys, we really need to focus on the objective. As much as I would love to continue watching this shouting match, the last thing I want is to lure them back to us."

I could tell Kenshi was still glaring daggers at Adam, but he let out a huff of air before nodding. Adam put a hand to his chin and stated, "We need a new place to hide. They'll be patrolling for another few hours. We'll just have to wait."

"Screw that," Kenshi replied. "I'm not waiting in here. We need to get out of here now."

There was a question that was really bothering me. "Are any of these guys vulnerable to bullets?" If there was ever a question I never thought I would have to ask, that would be it.

"Bullets can hurt Sc-that fire thing. Don't count on it killing him. That shadow guy... I'm not sure."

"Are you sure there are no more of these things?" Kenshi asked, crossing his arms.

"Pretty sure. Granted, I've never been to the upper floors, so I could be wrong," Adam stated. "But now I got a question for you two." Me and Kenshi raised a respective eyebrow. "How do you plan on escaping this place?

I looked towards Kenshi, who scratched his chin. "We're going to have to go up."

"To the upper levels?" Adam sounded incredulous there. "What makes you think we can make it?"

I offer up this idea. "We could just use the front door."

"That's a great idea. If there was one."

Okay, that was something I did not want to hear today. Sure, I figured getting to the front door would be a pain in the ass, but there had to be something from when this place was in business. Right? Come to think of it, I haven't really seen any windows either…

"What do you mean?"

"I've looked for the doors, but I couldn't find a damn thing. There is no way out, at least on this floor. And no, there are no lower floors." A shrug followed. "Maybe we can look to the upper floors."

"Alright, sounds like a plan." I looked between them. I'm about to ask a question when a sharp pain fills my body.

You know, the ground looks awful nice today. Maybe I should lay down on that. In fact, why take the time to gently place myself there? Falling headfirst works just as fine.


	9. Chapter 9

I probably would've fallen to the ground had Kenshi not caught me. Glad he did, too, otherwise the fall would've made quite the bang. He sat me down on the floor gently before asking, "Adrenaline wore off?" I nod. "How?"

"I told you," Adam replied. "I didn't inject him with much in the case he had a bad reaction." He pulled out another syringe and jabbed it into my shoulder.

"More adrenaline?" I ask through some substantial pain. I thank whatever God is out there that he at least left my legs in one piece.

"Yeah. Can't have you be useless." Argh—Why does he have to pat my arm? There is literally no reason for it. "That should last you a few hours. Hopefully by then we'll have gotten some more supplies. If we make it, that is."

"Well, Mr. Negative, do you have any ideas?" I ask, rubbing my hurt shoulder.

"As a matter of fact, I do." Adam opened the door slightly and peered through the crack. He turned back to us and gave us a quick nod before leaving.

I stood by Kenshi and whispered, "I'm not so sure about this guy. He keeps sticking me with needles."

"I don't trust him either. Nor do I like him," Kenshi replied, crossing his arms. "But he's potentially the only hope we have of getting out of here."

"Are you sure you can't sense anything?" I point out to where a window _would_ be. "Out there, I mean."

Kenshi shook his head. "There's less activity out there than in your head."

I give him a slap on the shoulder as a grin breaks out on his face. It's always nice when he jokes around like this. Better than being a brooding loner. I think we're at the point in our friendship where we can insult each other, but the both of us know we don't mean it.

At least, I hope so. The blindfold makes it hard to read this guy.

"I agree, but probably for the wrong reasons."

"If you two are done gossiping," Adam harshly whispered, "I could use your help."

Kenshi and I walked out of the restroom, me with my gun pointed forward, him with a hand on his sword. Adam had poked his head out the room before waving us forward. I followed closely behind with Kenshi behind me, a hand on my shoulder.

I whisper, "What's the plan?"

"I have a storage area nearby," Adam replied. "Across the floor. We have a little ways to walk."

"Why wouldn't you put it closer to your hidey-hole?" Kenshi asks.

"Because shut up." We made our way down the hall as quietly as we could. Not like we lacked motivation or anything. "Anyway, it was a few days into my stay here. I didn't really think that far ahead."

I shake my head. I know I'm starting to sound like a broken record, but I feel like I can't stress this enough. We are so screwed. Maybe we'll be able to survived, but then what? We have no idea where we are in relation to New York, and for all we know we aren't even in a city.

We made it about twenty feet before Kenshi stopped us. "Do you guys hear that?"

At first I didn't agree. Other than my heart pounding, there was no noise. Then I started to hear it. The noise was getting closer and closer before I could tell what it was.

Footsteps. And fire crackling.

A ball of flames shot towards us, narrowly being avoided by all three of us. I was slammed to the ground, Kenshi slid back on his feet, and Adam rolled out of the way. He got to his feet, looked at us for a moment before running off.

I saw him darting away. What the-? "Where do you think you're going?!" I shout after him. "Get back here!"

Kenshi rushed over to me and got me to my feet. "Forget him. We have more important things to deal with."

I turned to face where he was focusing on. That same creature was staring at us with plain white eyes, from when I first woke up. It was just staring at us… menacingly.

Kenshi's forehead glowed blue as he held out a hand. The creature didn't seem to notice as he took a step forward. I could see Kenshi's eyebrow raise in confusion. He tried it again, but the creature just kept walking forward.

I raised my pistol and fired off a couple of shots in his chest. This slowed him down as he clutched his chest. Blood, and by blood I mean lava, poured out of the bullet holes before they closed up.

"You've got to be kidding me," I mumble before ducking to avoid another fireball. Kenshi jumped out of the way and pulled out his gun, empting the clip into his chest, dropping him to the ground. He grabbed my shoulder and hauled me to my feet.

"That won't keep him down for long, let's go!"

Didn't have to tell me twice. I sprinted along with Kenshi as we tried to escape the creature. Strong emphasis on "tried." We made it about ten steps before Kenshi was tackled to the ground. I fell with him, unfortunately, so we were both sprawled across the ground. Kenshi probably got it worse, however, as blow after blow was raining down on him.

After a few punches to the face, the creature grabbed his face and held it there. I saw smoke emitting from his hands as Kenshi's face contorted in pain. I could tell he was about to let loose a cry.

I got to my feet as quickly as I could and sent a kick to the fire creature's face. He caught it and flipped me onto my back, his other hand never letting go of Kenshi's face.

Finally, it must have became unbearable, as Kenshi screamed. It was unnerving to hear. He had almost never raised his voice. This wasn't just pain. This was pure agony.

I picked up my dropped gun and aimed at creature's head. But I was knocked back by a fire ball, slamming into a wall.

My vision became blurred, as I put a hand to my head. Kenshi had stopped struggling, and I became worried. I tried to get to my feet. God knows I tried. But I just couldn't.

Thankfully, I didn't have to.

Something sent the creature onto the ground. I looked over to him and noticed the fire had been put out. It almost looked like… ice?

I turned back towards Kenshi, who was joined by a new figure helping him up. He turned towards me. I got a good looked at him. He was similar to the creature, but had human eyes. He was also colored blue.

"Don't just sit there!" He shouted. "Move!"

My senses returned to me as I got to my feet and ran over to them. He had slung Kenshi's shoulder over his own before dumping him on me. "Go," he stated. "I'll cover your backs."

"Who are you?" I ask. Something about his voice seems familiar.

"Don't be stupid, get out of here!"

Alright, that gets me moving. I go as fast as I can carrying Kenshi. His blindfold was pretty much gone, covering only one eye and hanging on by a thread. His face isn't nearly as bad as I thought it was. I could still see burns though.

I heard a shout and then a fist meeting bone. A feral roar soon joined the yelling as I knew they were pummeling each other. I doubt they'll both walk away.

I turn the first corner I get to, narrowly avoiding getting hit by a flying demon. I heard him crash into something, but I didn't know what. I looked behind as the man who helped us ran to the intersection, letting loose a steady stream of ice. Once he stopped, he immediately turned towards us and ran.

He caught up with us quickly. Placing a hand on my shoulder, he made me stop. He kicked a door in before shoving all three of us in there. "Don't move," he warned, shutting it. He motioned to get down on the floor. I did as silently told.

We waited for a good ten minutes before this guy got to his feet and nodded. "We're safe…er."

"Alright, time for some answers," I state, making sure Kenshi has some semblance of comfort. "Just who the hell are you?"

Now that I had time to study him, I could see that he was wearing a mask covering his face, but I could tell there was a scar running down his right eye. He looked at me before stating, "We've met."

"What?"

"Sorry I left you and Kenshi to fend for yourselves. I had to get my equipment."

"Wait… you're…?"

"Adam," he confirms. He then shrugs. "Well, that's one of my names.

"My true name is Sub-Zero."


	10. Chapter 10

"Let me get this straight, you hid all that battle armor?"

"Yes."

"You traded it for a hospital gown and bandages?"

"Yes."

"And you did this… why?"

Adam, well, Sub-Zero, apparently, sighed. "Look how similar I am to those things. How many people would trust me if they saw me?"

"I don't think anyone would survive _any_ encounters with those things, let alone multiple," I muse.

"Look at you," Sub-Zero mentioned, an eyebrow raised behind his mask.

I couldn't disagree. I'm still shocked we survived that thing once, much less three times. Hell, Kenshi would've been a well-done turkey had it not been for Sub-Zero here. To which I, and most likely my unconscious chum, am eternally grateful for.

But still…

"Why go through all the trouble to do this? And why wrap yourself in bandages, of all things?"

Sub-Zero scratched the back of his neck, almost subconsciously I noticed. What was he hiding under that mask? "I have my reasons, Stryker. But the important thing is they know I'm still alive. I have a feeling they knew for a long time, but I just confirmed it."

Something caught my attention. "You have normal eyes," I blurted out.

He nodded. "I'm not like them, if that's what you're inferring. I am human… technically."

A weary voice to my side mumbled, "Technically?"

I glanced down at Kenshi and helped him sit up. "Yes," Sub-Zero replied. "I was born a human. I have human blood flowing through my veins. But… a few years ago—."

"Yeah, yeah, I'm sure it's real tragic," Kenshi interrupted. He got to his feet, breathing heavily. I pat him on the shoulder. "But let's not lose focus on what the hell we're trying to achieve here. Getting out."

Sub-Zero nodded. "You're right, I'm sorry. They'll be on even higher alert than before. It seems donning this armor put an even bigger target on my head. And yours, by proxy."

"Doesn't matter," Kenshi replied. "We'll leave now."

"No," I affirm, placing a hand on his shoulder. "You're injured."

After a second's pause, Kenshi states, "Kurtis, you've gone unconscious at least three times, I found you with several broken bones, you were and _are_ covered in your own blood, and I'm sure you've got a concussion at least somewhere down the road. It's a miracle you're still up and walking, even with the double shot of adrenaline you took."

Well… couldn't deny that, really. All of the above is true. Honestly, I would like nothing more than to curl up and die at this point but I'm not going to be whoever or _what_ ever is in control's bitch. I'm going to get out of this, and I'm taking Kenshi with me. But still… he has a point.

"Alright, fine. You're right. I do feel like crap. But still, don't you think-?"

"No," was the blunt reply I received as he pushed me and Sub-Zero out of the way. "We ought to have evaded that thing by now. We keep moving."

Sub-Zero shot me a glance before stating, "At least let me help you with some of that pain."

Kenshi raised an eyebrow, much more apparent now that his blindfold was practically gone. Sub-Zero place a hand on my friend's shoulder and took in a deep breath. Kenshi's shoulders seem to sag as he let out a sigh of relief.

After Sub-Zero took his hand of Kenshi shoulder, he asked, "What'd you do?"

"I just dulled your nervous system. But be careful not to get hit. Pain is important."

"Why didn't you just do that to Kurt?" Kenshi asked.

"Yeah, why didn't you do that to Kurt?" I repeated. Yeah, I was angry. This guy stuck me with two needles and I'm still feeling jumpy. How big was that last dose?

Sub-Zero stated, "Because using these powers takes a lot of energy out of me. That and I needed to see if that adrenaline would work."

Well, that deserves a punch. But not right now. Before I can retort, Kenshi grabs me by the shoulder and drags me towards the door. He puts a finger to his lips and asks, "Are you ready?"

A nod from me and Sub-Zero is all the confirmation he needs to pull his sword out of his scabbard. He gently pushed the door open and motioned me to look. I walked out of the room, aiming my gun down the hall. Nothing in the front.

I turn around to see Kenshi had already covered my back. A good friend. Sub-Zero stepped out of the room before motioning us forward.

We made our way down the hall. I spotted some fresh blood smeared into the ground. It looked like it lead off into a separate door. What goes on in those rooms anyway?

I'm grabbed by the shoulder and shoved into the wall. I'm about to ask what the deal is when Kenshi puts a finger to his lips. We peak around the corner to view the creature. It was like a predator looking for prey. Which it was, when I think about it.

The thing was also coming straight towards us. I looked towards Sub-Zero for an idea, but he seemed as lost as I was. I turned towards Kenshi, but his face was scrunching up. A bang from another hallway echoed, as the creature's head snapped in that direction. It ran down that hallway as the three of us waited.

After we were sure it was gone, we continued on our way. "What did you do?" I had to ask.

Kenshi let out a deep sigh before quietly stating, "Threw something to distract it. We have five, maybe six minutes."

"That doesn't sound very confident to me," I replied with a bit of unease in my voice.

A loud roar filled the building. "Move," Sub-Zero commanded. "Now!"

We all moved as quickly as we could towards the closest stairwell. Once we got there, Sub-Zero said, "I'm going to seal it off. It shouldn't be able to follow us." He held out his hands as he sprayed his ice thing over the opening.

"That thing shoots fire," I commented. "It will melt the ice."

"Yeah, which is why we won't have much time," Kenshi replied, limping up the stairwell.

I took one last glance at the ice-wall before following Kenshi and Sub-Zero.


	11. Chapter 11

We have a whole new world in front of us, my friends.

We are officially on the second floor.

"Progress," I unintentionally mutter to myself.

"What?" Kenshi asked.

"Nothing," I reassure him. "Just… I'm amazed it's taken this long to get anywhere. Alright let's…"

How long have we been here, anyway? Feels like a couple months even though we, quite literally, just got here… yesterday? God, it's only been a day. Well, there is those entire twelve hours that are just a blank in my mind, I suppose.

As we move to go up the next flight of stairs, we encounter a little problem. Mainly, there are no stairs. What the hell…?

"What kind of layout is this?" I ask aloud, scratching my head.

Sub-Zero states, "No time to question the builders, we have to find that next flight of stairs."

We turned a corner before Sub-Zero stopped us. "What is it?" Kenshi asked, his hand immediately shooting for his sword. My hand drops towards my gun.

"We're not alone," he mentions.

"Did that thing get through the ice wall already?" I ask. Just the thought of that thing on the same floor of us sends chills down my spine.

"No. I mean, maybe, but it's unlikely," Sub-Zero quickly corrects himself. He moves to the wall, pushing himself against it as flat as he can. "I think it's something else."

"What?!" Kenshi and I exclaim at the same time. We move towards the opposite wall as quickly as we can, mimicking our cool new friend. I whisper at him, "You've _got_ to be shitting me. You said that fire guy was the only one here."

"Well, I'm sorry. I've never been above the first floor before."

Kenshi asks, "Then why the hell are we following you? You don't know any more us."

Sub-Zero looks us square in the eyes and then… shrugs. A shrug. All he does is shrug at a legitimate question.

I'm about to shout at him when a crashing noise draws out attention. My pistol is brought up, Kenshi's sword comes out, and Sub-Zero's hands glow blue.

Okay. That was weird. Can that just be our collective imaginations playing tricks on us? Is that just too much to ask? On the opposite end of the level, a loud growl reverberates off the walls. Then… footsteps? It sounds like claws slamming against the walls. I can hear movement in the vents above. Kenshi turns his attention to the ground. The one eye I can see through his damaged blindfold is wide.

Sub-Zero drops to one knee and places a hand on the ground before asking, "What is that?"

I shake my head. "I have no idea."

It's the harsh truth. Out of the three of us, I am probably the least informed of anything about this damn place. You know, because I was unconscious for a long time. This is not one of my favorite days.

Kenshi placed two fingers to his temple and concentrated. He does this whenever he's trying to detect something. After a few seconds, his eye went wide before he held out a—

 _Ooof!_

I'm thrown to my back by some force. I don't question what it is, as I already know, so I look up at Kenshi about to shout at him.

And I would have, too, had something not crashed down from above directly onto the spot I was standing. I will give you my best attempt to describe it in the few seconds of getting a look at it before running away.

Its skin isn't like mine or yours, or even the fire guy's. It's covered in green scales. From the back, whatever armor its wearing looks similar to Sub-Zero's, only a dark green color. On its fingers are really long, really _sharp_ talons.

I don't think it was wearing shoes, but like I said. I didn't get a great look at it before it turned around to roar at me.

Saliva flung from its long teeth onto me. In the heat of the moment I didn't notice it at the time, but the saliva almost burned to the touch. Nothing life threatening, thankfully, but I'll get back to this little detail later.

As it was doing that, I began to scream.

A force push sent it past me and onto its stomach. Didn't really work, since I heard it almost immediately bounce back up. I could hear the hiss as well as it started to run at us.

Sub-Zero pushed past me and let loose a steady stream of ice on the reptile-man. The attack froze the creature solid. I didn't waste a second before sending a bullet into the thing's head. The sculpture shattered when the bullet impacted. We all dared to breathe a sigh of relief.

But, sometimes, tempting fate can be a bitch.

To my left, another of those things burst through a wall, lunging at me. I ducked out of the way, only for it to smash its head into the opposite wall.

I heard two more drop to the ground, but I was more occupied with the one attacking me. The creature got to its feet before lunging at me. Its full weight sent me to ground as it dug its knee it my gut. It started snapping at my face, but with some fancy moves, I was able to shift my head _just_ enough so that it didn't kill me.

I freed my arm enough so that I pushed the barrel of it into this thing's mouth and fired. Green blood splattered against my face. Can tick off "getting doused in freaky-ass-reptile-man's blood" off the bucket list.

I pushed the reptile's corpse off of me before aiming at the reptile attacking Kenshi. He seemed to be doing much better than me, fending off two of them at once. What surprised me was that whenever Kenshi landed a blow with his blade, it bounced off their arms.

I craned my head to view Sub-Zero grabbing one of the reptiles by its leg and using it as a whip to slam it into another frozen one. Alright. I'll admit. That was pretty awesome.

Well, I think he's got things handl—oh, God, my hand!

I fall to my knees clutching my left hand. I almost, _almost_ forgot that it was broken. Now I'm starting to feel the rest of my injuries.

Getting kind of… tired…

An explosion erupted to our left, drawing all of our attentions, including the reptiles. From the fire, the scary man walked out, an intense gaze held on all of us.

Unlike the three of us, the reptiles seemed not to understand that this thing isn't something to be messed with. The two creatures attacking Kenshi rushed the man on fire.

It ended about as well as you'd expect.

The man on fire grabbed the first one by the throat before sending that chain-spear-thing into the second reptile's chest. He pulled it closer before grabbing it by the throat too.

He looked between them briefly before smashing their heads together. They exploded in a pile of gore.

Okay, that was gross. Sub-Zero grabbed me by the shoulder and helped to my feet. "Figured that wouldn't last long. Blind man, let's move!"

Kenshi nodded. He moved to follow us before stopping. He held his hand up. The blue glow surrounded the ceiling.

Uh, oh. The man on fire turned his attention from the dead creatures to Kenshi. He took a few steps before the ceiling collapsed on him. I raised my eyebrow as I noticed red liquid dripping down. A problem for later. Kenshi let out a deep sigh before jogging after us. "Come on."

I could've guessed that trick wouldn't keep that thing down for long. I heard an explosion and I just knew he had climbed out of the rubble.

I looked to my left and smiled. "This way!" I called out. I quickly made a sharp turn, Kenshi followed suit, with Sub-Zero bringing up the rear.

"What is it?" Kenshi asks.

"Stairs." I shrug. "Might as well keep up this good progress."

"This design doesn't make any sense," my friend laments.

We were home free.

Yeah. Right.


	12. Chapter 12

As soon as we made it to the next floor, we all stopped.

Unlike Kenshi and Sub-Zero, I didn't have any special-demon-finder-power. No, I was just me. A regular guy who somehow ended up in a godforsaken hospital that is so not getting a good review from this customer.

But even I had that gut feeling. That feeling that you're being watched. Unlike the last few floors, it wasn't openly hostile either. It's like it was just watching us… whatever it was. Honestly, I'd be much more at ease if it just attacked us already. I know, it sounds weird. We've been getting attacked all night, you'd think I'd finally be happy that we got a rest, but attacks were the norm now. It was unnerving whenever there was just, I don't know... quietness.

"I've never felt anything like this before."

I turn around to face Kenshi. His mouth his agape and his eyes are wide. Sub-Zero and I share a look. His look basically asks, "What's wrong?"

I have no answer. I ask directly to Kenshi, "What is it?"

"The anger, the hatred, the fury… the sadness. This place is... I can't describe it. Maybe Hell."

Sub-Zero rubs his gauntlet. "Clearly you haven't been paying attention." He motions towards the stairs, where the sounds of a massacre could still be heard. "'Hell' is one of the first things I thought about this place."

"I don't know," I rise to the defense. Sure, Kenshi's a bit of a hard case, but I've never doubted him. "I'm kind of feeling something too."

Sub-Zero moved forward. "Never mind that. We have to leave. Now."

Kenshi and I share a look. Sub-Zero's right. We can't be complaining about something like this. I'm going to take this chance and get the hell out of here. Now… where's the next staircase?"

We move into the right hall, wary of whatever is watching us.

Wait… what was…?

I straighten my gun, tighten my grip, and fire on the ceiling. Three bullets fly through the air and impact the ceiling. Kenshi pulls my gun down as Sub-Zero shouts, "What the hell are you doing?! Do you want them to find us?"

"It was up there," I defend my case. I swear I saw something! I can't be going crazy. "It was like a shadow. Kenshi, remember that thing that brought us here? That's what watching us!"

"And you just pissed him off," Sub-Zero replied, his hands glowing even brighter than before.

Well, I'm sure he would've kicked some serious ass had he not been knocked down by some unseen force. He skidded to the end of the hallway before crashing into the wall.

Our eyes followed his skidding body before turning back towards where he was previously standing. There was a brief flash of blackness before everything returned to normal. And I use "normal" loosely in this case.

Doesn't stop us from raising our weapons. "Congratulations, Stryker," Kenshi deadpanned. "Another demon thing is coming after us because you have a trigger finger."

"Oh, har har," I shoot back. I don't regret pulling the trigger. I just regret that bullets probably don't even scratch this thing. "I'll go check on Sub-Zero. You, uh, I don't know… keep it busy?"

Kenshi just gives me a glare. Alright, so maybe that was a very stupid thing to say. But what else can we do? I move over to Sub-Zero and place two fingers to his neck. There's a heartbeat. So, he's human, at least. Or, you know, not one of those things. I move to pick him up when I hear something.

Almost like it's coming from the ceiling. My attention goes directly towards it. There is definitely something up there, I'm sure of it. Kenshi must hear it too. We spare a single look…

…before I scoop Sub-Zero up and we're dashing down the hallway.

It's not until you're running down a hallway that you realize that a two-hundred pound man is really, really heavy. World advice.

I realize we won't find the stairs, at least without that thing chasing us, so I make a quick right and kick open a door.

Too bad I'm face to face with that shadow. It holds out an open-palm and I'm flying into the opposite wall. I drop Sub-Zero on the way, and I see Kenshi slashing down with his sword. Would've been a good hit, too. If it hadn't passed through the shadow.

Yet it was able to grab Kenshi by the back of his collar and send him flying down the hall. He remained on his feet and skidded to a halt, but I couldn't worry about that now. I had to worry about this thing… and the pain building up in my body.

I gingerly get to my feet, balling my hands up into fists. It takes a step towards me before disappearing entirely. My eyes bucked before a voice behind me calls out, **"Kurtis Stryker."**

Wait, what?!

I turned to face a creature similar to the shadow, but many more defined features. Then it grabbed me by the neck and lifted up. **"You weren't supposed to be here,"** it hissed. The voice was masculine and deep. Yet, at the same time, it was oddly soothing. Didn't change the fact that it was slowly crushing my trachea.

 **"I don't plan on killing you here and now,"** the creature states as plain as possible. **"I plan to torture you, slowly, painfully. You will be begging me to snap your neck to finally end it."**

That could cause some trouble for me in the near future. Well, since I'm going to die anyway…

I build up some spit, and spit a loogie in his face.

It just stares at me for a brief second before sending a fist into my stomach. It barely seemed like he put any force into the blow, but it hurt like hell. The air was knocked out of my lungs, my eyes widened, and some blood flew from my mouth.

Oh, no.

It could be because of a cut on my lip, or maybe some internal bleeding. I'm not sure at this point. He let's go of me before sending a fist in my face. I get throw to the side into a wall. I get to my hands and knees and rub my jaw.

Doesn't feel broken, but then again, I'm hopped up on adrenaline. I probably don't feel the pain. The initial plan was to get to my feet and kick ass. Too bad a boot to the back sends me to the ground.

Huh, that's strange. All of a sudden… the world's getting… kind of dark.

I can tell that thing is saying something, but it's all getting lost in a haze. Then the pressure is lifted from my back and I'm picked up. I'm about ready to sock the thing in the jaw for payback, but I can see blue on the person who picked me up.

Sub-Zero starts to speak, but I don't hear anything until, "—ker?"

I shake my head. "What?"

"Are you okay?"

"Yeah, I'm… I'm fine."

"Good. You stay here." He sets me down gently. "I'll take care of this."

I see him go before looking at the spot Kenshi was thrown to. Huh? He's not there. Where the hell could he have gone?

Eh. I'm sure he's fine.

Now… time for a rest.


	13. Chapter 13

I almost drifted back into unconsciousness. _Almost_. Like, a hair's length, almost.

But someone grabs me from behind and dragged me across the hall. That seemed to rouse me to the land of the living. I quickly rip myself free of my attacker's grasp and fell forward. It hurt. A lot.

"Oof!" I shout out, but roll over, pull out my gun and nearly press down on the trigger. And I would have too, had it not been Kenshi the one standing there.

"What are you doing?" he asks, raising his hands in the air.

I stare at him for a split second before looking back. I see Sub-Zero deliver a fierce punch to that shadow creature. He grabs it by the neck, pulls it up, and elbows it in the face. I'm about to cheer for the guy when Kenshi grabs me and hauls me to my feet.

"He's buying us time. Not putting on a show for us," he reminds me before running in the opposite direction. I give one last look towards Sub-Zero. He gets kicked away by the shadow guy, into the wall. This hardly seems to faze him as he leaps towards him again.

A part of me wants to jump in and help, but I know I can't. Not yet, anyways. I quickly run after Kenshi as Sub-Zero gets thrown through a viewing window. I know because I hear the crash.

I turn the corner and catch a fleeting glimpse of Kenshi, telling me where I should go. I follow instantly. But I still can't get the feeling out of my head that I'm being watched. Impossible, I tell myself. That thing is away, fighting with Sub-Zero. But, still… that feeling isn't going away.

I turn another corner to see Kenshi standing in front of a doorway, completely frozen. I walk up to him and ask, "What're you doing? We have to move." I begin to move past him.

"There's something behind that door."

Stopping in my tracks, I turn to face my friend. "Are you sure? Could it be another one of those things?" I pull out my pistol. Yeah, it hasn't worked whatsoever against these things, but it doesn't hurt to have it at my side for emotional support, right?

"No. It's something else, something I haven't encountered yet." He takes a step closer to the door and reaches out for it. I place my hand on his shoulder, stopping him.

"Are you sure you want to do that?" I have to ask. "If what's behind there is even _half_ as dangerous as those things... I just don't want you to hurt yourself." I pause before adding, "Or me, really."

He gives me a glance through his revealed eye. Well, "glance" probably isn't the right word for it. But I don't have a better one. I can see in his eye that he's not sure. Not even a little. But honestly? I doubt he has any other plans. I know I sure as hell don't.

I simply nod at his unspoken response before letting him open the door.

What we find is something that I honestly couldn't have expected.

It looked like a, well, a portal. Huh. Gotta say, did not expect that.

I look at Kenshi before asking, "You know what that is too?"

"A portal."

"Should we… step through it?"

"Probably."

"Okay, but… must we?"

A roar pierces throughout the floor. It sounded like the man on fire had finished off those reptile creatures and was now on the same floor as us. In fact, I knew he was.

Because he was stomping towards us on the other side of the hall.

I pushed Kenshi forward and shouted, "We must! We must!"

We jumped through the portal into blackness.


	14. Chapter 14

We spilled out onto the floor in and undignified heap. Kenshi quickly pushed me off of him, shouting, "Get off!"

I got to my feet, dusting myself off. "Okay, so that worked out a little better than I expected." Turning back to look at the portal, I'm surprised to see it's no longer there. I raise an eyebrow, but I can't say I'm surprised I'm surprised. Nothing about this place makes sense. I gave myself a quick once over. "Do you notice anything missing from me? A hand, a foot, my head?"

"You're fine, Kurtis." Kenshi got to his feet and cracked his back.

"Good," I reply, taking out my gun and ejecting the empty magazine. I look into my supply and what I found disappointed me. Only one mag left. A closer look shows that there are only six bullets left in it. Great. I take a deep sigh and slip it in.

Kenshi rolled his wrists before asking, "Now… where are we?"

I looked around the hallway before scratching my chin. It looked pretty much identical to the hallway we were just in. The only difference is the blood splatter on the walls. Down there, at least from what I noticed while running for my life, there wasn't all that much. Up here?

It gave me a stark reminder of the room me and Kenshi stumbled upon. The smell was not nearly as bad, thankfully, but it lingered. I scrunched up my nose before replying. "No idea. But I'm fairly certain we got away from… from…"

Okay, wow. Feeling a little dizzy.

"Kurt?"

"Hold on…" I wave him down. To be honest, I'm certain the adrenaline wore off a while ago. These fast few chases was good old fashion fear driving me. But now? I really want to curl up into a ball. "I just need to catch my breath."

"You're not well," Kenshi states, taking a step closer to me. "We need to get going."

"You are just a big ball of comfort, you know that?" I snarked back. I shake my head, but say, "I'm fine."

I looked down at my left hand. I remember it being broken. Now I can feel it. A lot. I can also feel all those broken ribs. I can't help but feel like I almost had a puncture in one of my lungs. I couldn't taste blood, thankfully, so I'm not bleeding internally. Yet, at least. You never know what lies in the future, I guess.

I squeezed my right hand into a fist, but I must have clenched it really hard, since I broke the skin. It hurt, but it kind of distracted from the other pain. I stood to my full height with a little difficulty, but I attempted to look strong. But Kenshi looked right through my guise.

"Bullshit. You are going to kill yourself. You need to rest." Kenshi places a hand on my shoulder. It's actually comforting. But…

"With a concussion?" I chuckled a little, but it hurt. "I've rested enough. If I fall asleep now, I might not wake up." I looked down at my left hand. "Hold on, we have to find some things."

Kenshi scratched the back of the neck, but nodded. "Alright. What do we need?"

"I need to make a cast. Do you think you could use your magic powers to help with my bones?"

"Maybe," was the response I get. All I needed to know.

I took a step into the nearest room before opening it up slowly. Kenshi stood behind me, his sword at the ready. I looked back at him, and when he nods, I throw the door open, gun to the ready. The safeties off, the gun's loaded, and I am scared shitless. Thank God no one's in the room.

"Watch the door, I'm gonna look for bandages." I slip my gun back into its holster before flipping a switch. I don't expect much to happen, so imagine my pleasant surprise when the light actually turns on.

I rummage through the supplies before finding what I need. I ask Kenshi, "Help me with this." I take my left glove off before holding it out to Kenshi. I grab the nearby bed sheet and, seeing it's clean, bite down on it.

He takes a hold of it before his face scrunched up ever so slightly. And that's when my hand started hurting. A lot. I tried to stand a stiff as a board, but I couldn't help squirming a little bit. I grit my teeth to keep myself from screaming as the bones knit back together. Kenshi nods and wordlessly asks for the bandages.

I give it to him before he tightly wraps my hand in it. He pats me on the shoulder before stating, "There. Just don't do anything stupid and that'll heal up… well, it should function soon, at least."

I nodded before spitting out the cloth. I give my teeth a quick rub and find that not of them are broken. Until I feel a space. I remove my hand and ask, "Did I lose a tooth?"

Kenshi gives me a dull look before asking, "Are you asking me?"

"Good point. But… nevermind."

How the hell did I not notice that before? I walk over to the mirror and bar my teeth. I can only see one tooth missing, but the rest are covered in dried blood. When did that happen?

"Okay, so, I've just figured out I'm missing a tooth," I comment to Kenshi. "That's… a thing that's happened."

"Does it really matter?" Kenshi asked, crossing his arms.

"Well, no. But… how did I not notice it? You'd think I'd notice something like that."

"Get over it," Kenshi replied. He hovered his hand by my sides. "From what I can tell, you're ribs aren't _too_ bad right now. But if you keep up all of this movement, you'll puncture a lung."

"So I should just lay back and take it easy is what you're saying? Just lie down and have a quick nap?"

"No. You _do_ have a concussion. You're not laying down anytime soon. But… leave the heavy lifting to me, alright?"

I hear genuine concern in his voice. He's _never_ spoken in that tone of voice to me. I mean, I knew he cared, but… never has it been stated so blatantly. I nod before asking, "Now… what's our next move?"

I see Kenshi's mouth open to reply, but a bang alerts our attention. I move towards the door with my gun drawn and Kenshi has his sword in his hand. I peer out the door to get a good look, but I can't see anything.

"Anything?" Kenshi asks, his hand against the wall.

I shake my head. "Nothing. Maybe it was our imagination?"

"When has it ever been our imagination?" Kenshi deadpans, dropping his hand. "One of those things found its way up here."

I nod before saying, "Follow me."

"You have a plan?"

"Nope. At this point I'm just winging it."

"That does not sound like a good plan," he replies, raising an eyebrow.

"Probably not, but we can't stay here, can we?"

Without waiting for a response, I begin to move forward, my gun raised ready to fire at a moment's notice. I know Kenshi's behind me doing the same with his sword.

We make it about ten feet before something goes wrong.

A fireball gets blasted towards us, but we're able to duck out of the way just in time for it to soar over our heads. I fall flat on my face, while I'm sure Kenshi is able to make a graceful leap. I turn my head to get good look at Kenshi who's… wait, did he get hit?

He seemed to have been thrown back by some force as he's sprawling across the floor. Smoke is billowing from his chest as I come to a startling realization. I'm the only one of us that has no chance whatsoever against this man on fire. Kenshi's down, God knows where Sub-Zero is, and the man of fire is right in front of me.

I turn back to face the man on fire before getting to my feet. He stands tall and proud in front of me. This is the first time I've gotten a good look at the creature.

He doesn't appear to be breathing, amazingly.

You know what? I'm going to die soon anyway, I'm going to make it a badass one. I muster up all of my strength to utter one badass line.

"Shit."

* * *

 **A/N:** What's this? _Two_ chapters in one day? How can this be?

Well, the last chapter didn't even crack 1,000 words, so I'm giving you guys a little gift.

Spino, out.


	15. Chapter 15

If there is ever a moment where I want to be absolutely anywhere else that's not here? It would be when I first woke up. Seriously, waking up in a puddle of your own blood with absolutely no idea what happened? Not a fun time.

But now? Now would be a very close second. My hand is aching really badly, I can feel my ribs start to mess up my insides, and now that thing is here. He was staring at me with those haunting white eyes glaring into my very soul. It was rather uncomfortable, I must say.

I bring my gun up and fire a bullet between his eyes before running to grab Kenshi. But something hit me in the back and threw me forward. I fall flat on my face before sliding a little bit. Okay, first of all? Ouch. Second of all? Ouch! And lastly? That failed to stop this thing for even a little bit. All the times before, at the very least, it staggered this beast.

This time? Not even a little. I roll over onto my back and bring up my gun, firing another two bullets into the creature's chest, near where the heart would be. This time it sent it back. Huh. A thought for later. I picked up Kenshi, who was jostled awake by the motioned, and ran. Kenshi had woken up at this point and was running with me.

"Is that thing still chasing us?!" Kenshi shouted in exasperation, rounding a corner with me.

"I hate to say it, but yes. It is. How did it find us so fast?"

Kenshi doesn't offer a response. Instead he skids to a stop, turns around, and raises his arms. A blue glow surrounds his head as I just know what's going to happen. I go wide-eyed as I take more than a few steps back. The ceiling caves in just in front of him as he grabs another section of the ceiling and does the same.

I narrow my eyes as I notice that same red liquid dripping down again. But this time, the entire hospital shakes. A very loud roar fills the hallways. Kenshi and I look around in shock. He shakes me out of it by shouting, "No time to wonder about that, let's go!"

He gets me to my feet as we're both running again. Oi.

We turn one last corner before we come across something that catches us off guard. Well, it catches me off guard anyway. You know how we haven't really stumbled across any bodies since we've showed up? Yeah, we found out the reason for that.

It's a wide open room, with gurneys filling up all of the available space. Most of them have mutilated bodies strapped to them, similar to the one I found in the room I woke up in. I take a step closer to the first body and get a good look at it.

It's a woman, or was, I should say. Her throat was slit. And by "slit," I mean, "so deep her head is practically falling off." Her chest was opened up and almost all of her organs were missing. But that's the thing. It looked like something pushed out of that hole.

I feel l like I'm about to throw up. That's what I want to do. Back in the room, my vision was still somewhat wonky. But now I can see in great detail the atrocities that those things are doing. I touch the woman's shoulder before sighing deeply. I move over to the next body.

Same thing as before. Only this time it looked to be a man in his early forties. Something seemed familiar about him, though. Almost like I've seen his face before. I felt a hand on my shoulder. I whipped around before seeing Kenshi standing there.

He had a distraught expression on his face before shaking his head. "No time to mourn anybody. That thing isn't going to be held back by that collapse for long. We need to find the next exit."

"Right," I mutter. "Right, it's just… how many people are here?"

"I don't know," Kenshi answers honestly. "A lot. I can tell you that much. But we can't save them. We have to save ourselves."

"Okay, let's… let's go."

We turn around and head into a different hall. "Kenshi, do you think you can feel the next doorway like you did last time?"

"If I'm close, maybe. But I wasn't even trying then. Maybe the signature is completely different, I don't know. But I can't feel anything right now, so it's not here."

Wait… I skid to a stop in front of a door. I feel a pull towards it. I don't want to open it, but something is making me. I take a step towards it while Kenshi stops and asks, "Kurt? What is it?"

"Something's behind this door."

Kenshi shook his head, hissing, "Then don't open it."

"That's the thing…" My hand grips the door handle. "I can't stop myself."

The door flings open revealing that shadow creature from before. It rears up to its full height, easily head and shoulders over me. I'm a big guy. Six-foot-two, at least. But this guy? Easily eight feet tall. Odd, since it wasn't that big before—

 _SMACK!_

I get flung to the side, nearly barreling into Kenshi. He's able to avoid me as he sends a flurry of telekinetic punches into the thing. It didn't flinch whatsoever. It moved out of the doorway, showing us it's full form.

A shadow was the best thing to describe it. I couldn't find any other words for it. It barely had a form whatsoever. I could see two clearly defined arms, but everything else is just tendrils. It dashes towards Kenshi surrounding him.

He pulls out his sword and begin swinging. There's little finesse, but I doubt that's the point. I hear a screech emit from the creature as his sword slices through it. It moves back before sending two tendrils out. Kenshi's able to slice the first one apart but had to avoid the second.

I couldn't do a thing. All I could do was watch my friend become slowly overwhelmed. As good as he was doing right now, he couldn't keep this up. The shadow creature's attacks were coming quicker and fiercer at this point.

A tendril made it past Kenshi's defenses and impaled him through the shoulder. Kenshi dropped his sword as he let out a scream. The shadow creature sent in two more tendrils in Kenshi's other shoulder and his right thigh. It lifted him up as he thrashed madly.

I shouted, "Kenshi!" and rushed the creature, firing off two shots. As expected, they did absolutely nothing. I was smacked to the side and sent flat on my back. I opened my eyes and saw Kenshi's struggling weakening. It's going to kill him. And I can't do a damn thing about it.

But that's when a ball of fire sails through the air.

It slams into the shadow, visibly hurting it. The three tendrils removed themselves from Kenshi's body as he fell to the ground. I crawled over to him before picking him up and throwing his arm over my shoulder.

The man on fire stalked down the hallway, his eyes never leaving the shadow creature. I took this as my opportunity to get the hell out of there. I ran as fast as I could while carrying a two-hundred pound man. Which wasn't very fast, admittedly.

As soon as I turned the next corner, I kicked open the first door I saw. But I didn't go in it. Whichever one of those things won, it would follow us. I'm sure of that. I saw a fireball slam into the wall. Looks like he missed. I moved on, opening the next door and placing Kenshi on the ground. I closed the door gently before joining him.

The sounds of the struggle continued for a good ten minutes.

Now, all we could do was wait…


	16. Chapter 16

Ten minutes.

That's how long I've been lying on the ground. My back was starting to get very stiff right about now. I looked over to Kenshi, who was still unconscious. God damn it, that's supposed to be me in his position, considering the beating I've took this past day. Quite frankly, he's been doing all heroics.

Honestly, I've felt pretty useless this entire time, be it due to injuries, invulnerable creatures, or some other bullshit reason I can think. The fact remains, however, that I am pretty much useless right now. But I'm also the only one conscious and present right now. Kenshi's out cold, Sub-Zero is God knows where, and I'm… royally screwed.

Another minute passes before I work up the courage to get to my feet and look out the window. Nothing's passed this way yet, thankfully, but it's only a matter of time. I crouched down and crawl my way over to Kenshi to check up on him.

"Kenshi?" I ask, placing two fingers to his throat. I can feel a pulse. That's one less worry. He's barely breathing though. I let out a deep sigh before letting my hand fall.

To be honest, I'm not sure we can make it through this. I know, I know, I've been such a Deby-Downer for the past fifteen chapters, but let's face it. I'm right. There's very little we can do. I've just been bullshitting my way through this entire goddamn hospital, whose layout doesn't even make any sense! Seriously, why can't we just—

 _Crash!_

My gun is already in my hand when the door falls down. I'm already turned around when the foot that did the kicking steps in. Aim for the heart, I tell myself. Headshots apparently don't do a damn thing. And it's not that shadow thing either. It's the man on fire, it has to be…

Or… it could be someone else…

Sub-Zero steps through, before giving the room a quick look. His eyes meets mine as a smile crosses his face. I can tell because of the wrinkles around his eyes. He nods before saying, "Been looking all over for you guys."

"Wish I could say the same," I reply, holstering my weapon. "I'm gonna be honest, we cut and ran. Hey, how did you get away from that thing?"

"Well when that fire creature made it to my floor, that shadow thing just disappeared."

"Speaking of "shadow things," did you know there was one of them on this floor?"

Sub-Zero shook his head. "No. Haven't ran into anything. What was it like?"

"It wasn't like that thing we fought in the lower floor," I state, rubbing my temple. "It was… It was like an actual living shadow. Well, probably not living, but you know what I mean. It had no shape, it wasn't… I don't know, what's the word?"

"Corporeal?" Sub-Zero suggests, his arms folded. "No, don't know anything about it. Whatever attacked you? I don't know." He shrugs.

I nod before moving over to Kenshi. "Before I carried him in here, that fire monster attacked again. I mean, does that guy just have it out for us in particular?"

"You're a hunt. And a crafty one at that," Sub-Zero replies, kneeling down next to Kenshi with me. "He's probably enjoying this for once."

"Well, that's a pleasant thought," I mutter to myself. I lift Kenshi to his feet and throw his arm around my shoulder. "Could use some help here."

"Sure." Sub-Zero threw Kenshi's other arm over his shoulder. "We can't let anything distract us again. We need to get Kenshi to a hospital."

I glare at him.

"What?"

Still glaring.

"Why are you—Why are you doing that thing with your face?"

A sigh escapes my lips. "Let's just go."

With little noise, we moved out of that room. My limbs were becoming less stiff with each passing moment, thankfully. I stretched out my free arm and listened to my shoulder pop. Oooh, that felt good. When I bent my elbows for the first time that same pop filled my ears and it was glorious. Nothing feels better than popping stiff bones.

Alright I'll stop saying pop.

Kenshi's a heavy man. Sure, he's smaller than me, but that's not saying much. A lot of people are. Plus with the built up injuries that have taken their toll on me, I can barely keep his weight up, especially without the added adrenaline of being chased by demons, shadows or whatever creepy-crawly crawled out of the woodworks.

The hospital creaked again. I felt that same tug pulling me towards another door, but it wasn't as strong this time around. So I ignored it. I wouldn't be able to do that for long. Whatever went down during that fight, it wouldn't be enough to stop that thing.

But something still lingered in my mind. "Hey, Subby—"

"Never call me that again."

"Alright, fine. Sub-Zero. Whenever we tore down walls to stop one of those things did you… notice that red stuff?"

He gave me a look of suspicion. "Red stuff?"

"Like when Kenshi tore down that wall to stop those reptiles… you never noticed that liquid falling down?"

He still looked at me like I was crazy. Granted, in a normal conversation? Yeah, sure. I'd be thrown in an asylum for the crap I was spewing. God knows I'd probably be the one doing it, but with what I've seen in the past day or so? Red liquid falling from the sky is the least of the crazy things that's happened.

"You don't believe me," I state. I don't phrase it as a question, I know it's what he thinks. Once again, I wouldn't believe me in any other circumstances, but here… not so much.

"No, it's not that. It's just…" Sub-Zero scratches the back of his neck. "I didn't think humans could see that stuff."

"I'm sorry, could you repeat that?"

"That red stuff is, for lack of a better term, the building's blood."

Now it's my turn to look at him like he was crazy. Okay, sure, that probably makes me a hypocrite, but c'mon!

"I ask again; could you repeat that with plain old English?"

Sub-Zero sighs. "The building's alive. That's what's keeping us here. And we've hurt it more than anyone else. That's why that thing is after you."

"And that hunt bullshit?"

"Oh, no, that's true. He loves to hunt things and we've given it a test. But it just so happens the building is telling it to kill us."

I give him a blank stare before blurting out;

"What the fuck?"


	17. Chapter 17

Okay, _so!_ Let's run through everything that's wrong with this goddamn hospital. Are you reading? Because there will be a quiz on this at the end.

First of all, this apparently isn't even a real hospital! It's a living Eldritch Abomination that kidnaps people in order to get its rocks off! Honestly, that's probably the stupidest thing I've ever heard in my entire goddamn life, but that does explain the blood falling from the ceiling _and_ the rumbling from when Kenshi did it again.

Second of all, this _thing_ is infested with demons, aliens, creatures, _whatever!_ Things that are trying to kill us, doubly so now that we've physically hurt this damn building. So, you know… feeling kind of proud of that fact. Goddamn building deserves more than a bit of a boo-boo.

And third of all, and finally, I'm laughing about the entire thing. I'm sorry it just so funny! Think about it: all of these bad things happen to you, you're beaten, bloodied, nearly killed, and it's all because the building is alive and is making the creatures perform its evil bidding.

How can it not get funnier than that?

I leaned against the wall, clutching my side. Not because it's _that_ funny, but just because my sides are hurting. But it is funny enough to make me burst out into laughter, so there's that.

Sub-Zero is just glaring at me as the last of the giggles leaves my body. I don't care how that sounds. I really don't. Let's just skip to what Subby said.

"What is so funny?" He asks, shifting his weight to keep Kenshi from falling over.

"Nothing, it's just, hehe, the building's alive?!"

"You don't believe me," he echoes, raising an eyebrow.

"Oh, God, no. I believe you," I reassure. Look, the building being alive is stupid, but based on what I've seen? I'll take stupid over the other options any day. After everything that's happened, I've had to be an idiot not to believe that. It's just… the building?! That is just too funny to pass on the opportunity for a good gut buster."

"A what?"

"Nothing," I reply. I get to my full height, cracking my back and possibly a few ribs. "Alright, I'm done. I've successfully fended off the laughter. Now… let's get out of here."

Sub-Zero rolled his eyes before dumping Kenshi on me. I guess it's payback for laughing at something that's apparently not funny. Can't think of anything that wouldn't be right now. We moved along this long stretch of hall as my limbs protested the action of both walking and carrying Kenshi, but what else can I do?

A third wheel is what I am. Really, this feels like a unicycle with an extra set of wheels sticking off the seat. No reason for them, in fact they're probably a hindrance. But they are there and we have to deal.

We round a corner before Sub-Zero stops us in front of a door. He tilts his head before his arms freeze over. "Do you feel that?"

I look between the door and Sub-Zero before stating, "Whatever you do, do not open that door."

"What, why?"

"Because it's the same trick it used on me," I mention, shifting my weight to make carrying Kenshi far more comfortable. That wasn't saying much thought. Anyway, back to the matter at hand.

I don't know how. I don't know why. But I do know that whatever that thing was, whatever it wanted, it somehow lured me to a door. Not the same door, so for all I know I'm being paranoid, but hey. Better to be safe than sorry, right?

Sub-Zero turns back to look at the door before asking, "Are you sure?"

"Well, different door, but if something is telling you to open it… you probably shouldn't. Especially not on this floor."

"How did you find the portal again?" Sub-Zero asks me, raising an eyebrow.

"Oh, well, Kenshi felt something behind a door and he…" I stop myself. Okay, wow. I just completely destroyed whatever case I was trying to build. I open my mouth to continue but I can't find anything to say.

"That's what I thought," Sub-Zero replied, reaching out for the door. He placed his hand on it. I had to act quickly.

Without really thinking, sorry Kenshi, I drop my friend to the floor and grab Sub-Zero's arm. I give him one of the best glares I can give before asking, "Are you certain you want to do that?"

He takes a deep breath, slowly. He then bluntly replies, "Nope." He throws the door open, his hands up at the ready. Instead of a shadow creature, a corpse fell out. Unlike the bodies in the room, he was rather intact. In fact, based on the rate of decay, this couldn't have happened a day ago.

Sub-Zero and I share a look before he picks up the corpse and props it against the wall. He placed two fingers before I ask, "Why bother?"

"I don't know," he replies before dropping his hands. "I was just hoping, maybe."

"Yeah, well, that guy is deader than most of the people on the Titanic," I reply, walking into the room with Kenshi still slung over my shoulder.

"Isn't that a bit tasteless?"

I wave off the suggestion. "It's been almost a hundred years, we've had time to mourn."

Sub-Zero raised an eyebrow. We stare at each other for a painfully awkward moment before I respond with, "Never mind. The point is that that guy is dead."

"Right," he replies, setting the corpse down gently on the ground. "How's Kenshi doing?"

I lay him down on the bed, trying to get him as comfortable as I think I can.

"He's breathing if that's what you mean," I reply, looking over my friend. Pain was etched onto his face, as his breathing was rapid and ragged. I place a hand on his chest. I don't know why. Maybe to comfort him. That would be a nice thought. A thought then occurs to me. "How about you?"

"Huh? Oh, yeah, I'm fine." He walks over to join us, placing a hand on Kenshi's shoulder. His hand glows blue for a moment before he drops it. "That should ease some of the pain, but I have no idea what happened."

"Like I said, we were attacked by some shadow, it stabbed Kenshi in the shoulders and a leg, and now he's like this." I crossed my arms and leaned back against a wall.

He shook his head. "Something's wrong."

"And the award for Most Obvious Observation goes to…" I snark with a smirk on my face, but a glare from Sub-Zero shuts me up.

"That's not what I mean. Kenshi took a beating even worse from the man on fire, yet he was up in, what? Five minutes?"

I nod. He's got a point. Granted, I'm not surprised he passed out at all. I'm more surprised he hasn't woken up, especially compared to the beating the man on fire doled out. Man, he got the shit kicked out of him. Would've been kind of funny had it not been life or death. But getting stabbed three times will take a lot out of you. I should know.

But he should've at least woken up to complain about the fact that he couldn't get up without potentially dying. I know how that feels too. Still not sure how I'm awake, much less walking and talking. He hand levels over my gun as I pull it out. I slip out the magazine and check how many…

One. One bullet left.

Great. We're totally screwed.

"I don't know," I respond. When the words leave my mouth, I hoped they would have something to them. Maybe a jovial tone to lighten up the mood, or reassurance that everything that will be alright. But, no. No, there was nothing. No emotion. Just monotone.

I'm no Johnny Cage. Not by a long shot. I can't crack a joke at everything. But I like to think I'm able to get the mood light a little.

But here? Now? A little while ago, I could easily have hope that we could get out of this. It was going to be difficult, sure, but…

I gave him another once over. Then I noticed something by his neck.

"Hey, what's that?"

Sub-Zero raised an eyebrow before walking around the bed to stand next to me. I reached towards Kenshi's neck and pulled down his collar. "What the hell…?" Sub-Zero breathed out.

I just shook my head.

It started from the stab wound near Kenshi's shoulder and traveled up his neck. What is was? I have no idea. All I know is that Kenshi's veins were bulging out and instead of blue, they were a much darker color. A sudden realization struck me.

Kenshi was dying.


	18. Chapter 18

"What the hell is happening?"

"I don't know," Sub-Zero reassures, placing a hand on Kenshi's shoulder. "I've never seen anything like this."

"What!?" I shout at the top of my lungs. It's stupid of me, I know. It's not his fault, hell, it's not even my fault really. It's that damn shadows fault, but my friend was dying, and I needed to stop it. Anyway I could. "There has to be something here that can help!"

"Stryker," he states, but I ignore him and slap away the comforting hand that he was offering me.

"Listen, you son of a bitch, I'm not going to let any friends die because of this hellhole," I almost spit out. Pushing past him, I grab Kenshi's shoulders and start shaking him. "Wake up! I'm not doing this without you, Kenshi, so wake up!"

"Stryk—"

"I'm not letting him die!"

"Quiet down," he calmly replies. "If you keep shouting, I will be forced to knock you unconscious. Kenshi is dying, yes, I'm sorry. But there is a possibility we'll have to…"

"To do what?" I ask. I'll admit. I'm desperate right now. I have no idea what's happening to my best friend, I'm trapped in this god forsaken place and I… I just wanna go home. I want to go home with my friend, kick my feet up on my sofa, crack open a beer and watch some really terrible day time television.

I don't care what it takes at this point. I'm going to get out of here with Kenshi, and I'm… Oh.

Oh, no.

I grab Sub-Zero by the collar and hiss, "What will we have to do?"

He just give me a look. It's one of sorrow, sadness, and regret. We both know what he's suggest but I can't. "Kurtis," he softly states, placing a hand on my shoulder, but I slap it away.

"No!" I turn away, unable to look at him. What he's suggesting? Something I would never consider. "I know what you're going to say, and just… No! I'm not doing it!"

"I was never going to suggest _you_ do it," Sub-Zero replied, crossing his arms in front of his chest. "I never expected you to either. I'll do it now, in order to put him out of his misery."

"You're saying there's no hope, that we can't save him? There has to be something we can do!"

"Like what?!" Sub-Zero shouted at me. I took a step back. Throughout all of this time we've been here, I've only him his raise his voice in anger like that once, when him and Kenshi were arguing about something. So when he did it this time, I'll admit, I was caught by surprise. "You think I _want_ him to die? I'm not some monster, Kurtis. I don't know him nearly enough to even consider us acquaintances, but he's a human being, and I'd rather not let one die, but look at him!"

I glanced down at the veins running up Kenshi's neck and shoulder. If my guess was wrong, it was all over his body by now. "That's not right," Sub-Zero continued. "Who knows what kind of pain he's in. It would save him."

I shake my head. He makes a good point, but there has to be something—anything—that can save him. "Sub-Zero, I get that, but I just… I just can't."

"Why not?"

"He's my best friend and the only family I've got left!" I take a step closer to him. "As far as I'm concerned, you're asking me to not just let my brother die, but for me to be the one to do it!"

Sub-Zero's eyes momentarily widened at that statement as he looked away. He closed his eyes before taking a deep breath. "Look, we—"

A weary voice interrupted. "Will you two stop talking about me like I'm not here?"

We both looked down at Kenshi as I kneeled by his side and ask, "Kenshi, what's wrong?"

"It's in me, Kurtis," Kenshi replied, his face contorting in pain.

"What is?"

"That creature. It put something inside of me, I can't… I can't hold it back much… AAAAAGGGGHHHH!" He rolled off the table and fell onto his back before he began contorting violently. I moved over to him, trying to keep his shoulders down, but he threw me off with a telekinetic push.

Well, now I know how that feels. Never doing that again.

I slammed into the wall, just barely missing the built in sink hospitals have in the room, but I quickly got back to my feet. Sub-Zero was already taking my position of hold him down. His hands were colored a bright blue as I knew he was trying to freeze Kenshi. He looked up at me before saying, "Stryker, I don't think we-."

"No! Don't you dare say it!" I held Kenshi down as Sub-Zero kept pumping in ice to Kenshi's body.

After a few moments, Kenshi settled down. I dragged him over to lean him up against the wall. He opened his eyes, and turned his head in my general direction. He spoke in a soft, raspy voice, "Kurt… he's right."

"Don't agree with him, Kenshi, we can fight this." Now I was really sounding desperate, but I didn't care. He was my best friend, hell, I consider him to be a brother. I can't just…

"Kurt… I can feel it changing me. Soon, I'm going to be like one of them, and I can't live like that," he explained to me, grabbing my shoulder. He pulled me closer before saying, "I want you to do this. I _need_ you to do this."

I could hardly look him in the eye. Not that I was disgusted by his request or what he wants. Far from it. I understand it completely. If the positions were reversed, I'd be begging him to pull the trigger. But Kenshi's supposed to be the stronger of us two.

Who was the one who was lying in a puddle of his own blood when he woke up? Me. Kurtis Stryker. Who was the one who barely had a scratch on him when we ran into each other? Kenshi. He was already fighting demons with his pure determination when it took me two vials of adrenaline to keep up.

He's not supposed to be the one to die tonight. None of us were. As much as I disliked Sub-Zero, I couldn't just watch him die either. I don't want any of us to die. No one was supposed to die!

"I'd do it myself," Kenshi proclaimed, filling the silence in the air. "But I can barely move. Please."

I turn to look back up at Sub-Zero, but he just shakes in head in resignation. There really is nothing we can do. It's hopeless. My insides are burning from pain, but I'm sure it's nothing compared to what Kenshi is going through.

I get to my feet, turn to Sub-Zero, and ask, "Can I have a few more minutes?"

Sub-Zero nodded, placed a hand on my shoulder, patted it, and then walked out while saying, "I'll keep watch."

I give him a nod of my own before turning back to look at Kenshi. His face has gotten deathly pale. The veins on his face are turning into the same disgusting color as the ones on his shoulder. He chuckles before stating, "I never did tell you why I have this sword… did I?"

I smirk before confirming his question. "No, you didn't. I just thought it would be intrusive to ask."

"Yeah, well… remember a few months back… we stopped that tournament?"

"I remember. Jax thought about sending in one of our prisoners. Terrible plan."

Kenshi laughed louder at that. "It was… Shang Tsung… you remember I had a… problem with him?"

"Something about revenge. That's all the reason I ever got."

"He's the one who did this to me."

I raise an eyebrow. "The blindness?" He nods. "I assumed you were born with it."

"A blind man cannot become as good as I am." Good to know that, even moments approaching death, he can point out the absurdity in things. "I remember the world quite vividly. My childhood in Europe… life in Japan… my last day."

"How did he blind you?" I had to ask.

"I was cocky… arrogant… even more so than now. So I thought, an old man wouldn't be a problem. I've never been so wrong before in my life. He lured me… to a cave… I was blinded in it."

"How?"

"Souls…"

I couldn't help but chuckle at that, and based on the grin on his face, he felt the same way about it. He continued. "Only the worthy may wield the sword… I wasn't worthy at the time…"

"Is the blindness a test?"

He nodded. "And now you know. I hope it satisfied you."

"Honestly? I can tear that story down with so many criticisms."

We both burst out laughing. It hurt the both of us to do it. Me, because of my mangled ribs. Him, because of whatever was going on inside of him. He gasped between laughs, "I'm sorry my life's story is terrible."

The laughter petered out. He both sat in silence. Kenshi turned to me and said, "The Sento… take it for me…"

"I'm not a swordsman," I mention.

"Trust me, I know this. But, I don't want to let it rot in here with me." And with that, his grin fell at the same time mine did. His hand reached up to unclasp the scabbard, but a placed a hand on his shoulder before doing it myself.

I set the sword to the side before hearing him state, "It's time."

I squeezed my eyes shut. Tears began slipping through them. "Are you sure?" He nodded.

Getting to my feet, I walked to the other side of the room. I pulled out my gun, took out the magazine, and looked to find it with only one bullet left. I let loose a deep sigh before slipping it back in. Turning around, I walk closer to the fallen form of my best friend.

"Kenshi," I state, raises my gun. "You were like my brother. In fact, you _are_ my brother."

Kenshi grins before stating, "Likewise. Now, please. Do it before I start getting the feels."

Heh. Never one for mushy goodbyes.

We smile one last time before both of our smirks fall for good. I raise a shaky pistol. At this range, there's no way I could miss. He closes his eyes as he waits for the inevitable. And all I can do…

…is pull the trigger.

…

…

…

...

 _BANG!_

…

…

…

…


	19. Chapter 19

The gun dropped from my hands and clattered to the ground. I soon joined it on my knees, not able to stand anymore. I look down at the ground, not making a single sound. There's no sobbing. No wheezing. Just a steady stream of tears rolling down my cheeks.

"Stryker."

When I got out of bed yesterday morning… my God. It's only been a day? When I got out of bed yesterday, the last thing in my mind was making any life altering decisions. Maybe try and fail to pick up a woman. Have a couple beers with Kenshi. Not this. I never imagined this. How could I?

Nobody gets out of bed and expects to get abducted and tossed into a freaky hospital. Nobody expects to be chased by demons, reptiles, shadows, they just don't. And I guarantee you, without shred of a doubt, they don't expect to be the one to kill their best friend today.

"Kurt?"

"Hmm?" I look back towards Sub-Zero, who walked into the room.

"Are you… Are you…?"

"I just put a bullet into my best friend's brain. How the hell do you think I feel?"

It wasn't fair to him. I knew it. He wasn't the one who killed Kenshi. He wasn't the one to infect him with whatever that shadow thing did. I was the one who watched as it happened. _I_ was the one who let the damn thing sink its tendrils in his body. And I… I was the one to pull the trigger. That weight will weigh on my shoulders for the rest of my life.

Which might not be very much longer now that I think about it.

What I said seemed to halt Sub-Zero. I saw something flash through his eyes. Regret? Sorrow? A life of misery? None of it would surprise me, but what caught me most was that there was a sense of understanding beneath those sad eyes. I feel as though he could have lashed out at me, but he didn't.

All he said was, "… Not good, I know. But…" He took a deep breath before informing sternly, "We need to leave. I wish we could burn the body, but we don't have a lighter. I mean, we could probably find something flammable in here, but…"

"No," I reply, getting to my feet. "As much as I hate to leave his body, we have to get a move on." I stumbled forward. Sub-Zero moved to catch me, but I held my hand up after grabbing the bed. "I'm fine. I'll be fine."

"Is the adrenaline wearing off?"

"The adrenaline? That crap wore off hours ago."

"Then how-?"

"I've been chased by demons, shadow creatures, and my heart is jackhammering harder than a quarterback on prom night. I had _more_ than enough natural adrenaline coursing through my body to last me the night."

"And now?" Sub-Zero asks, raising an eyebrow. "You almost fell flat on your face."

I nod, clutching my side. "Yeah, well…" I turn to look at Kenshi's body. "Killing your best friend will do that to you." I pick up the sword before strapping it to my back.

"Look, you're obviously not well…"

"'Not well?'" I nearly shout. "Not well?! What about this situation is 'well?!" I take a step towards the door. "We are being hunted like rats! I just killed my best friend! I'm slowly going insane! I ask again; what about this situation is well?!"

Sub-Zero averts my gaze. It's not his fault, I tell myself. I have to remind myself that if we hadn't checked in on that shooting we wouldn't be in this position. It doesn't keep me sane, it only claws at whatever semblance of sanity I have left.

"You know that's not what I meant."

I don't reply. I just push past him and walk out the door. I can hear him following me. Strength in numbers and all that jazz. We just keep walking. Neither of us talk. There's no need. We both know the situation. Find that portal thing and get out. Sounds simple enough, right?

" **Howdy, Kurtis.** "

I stop and turn to face Sub-Zero, only to find him frozen in place. Not frozen in a block of ice, but just… still. I step closer to him, snapping my fingers a couple times in front of his face. "The hell?" I mutter.

" **Oh, don't worry, he'll be fine.** "

I instinctively reach for my gun while whipping around. I see that same thing from the floor below. The one Sub-Zero was fighting. It raises its arms, calling out, " **Woah there, champ. I don't want to fight.** "

"Who are you and what do you want?" I hiss, reaching for the sword instead.

" **The 'who' or 'what' isn't as important as the 'why' I'm reaching out to you,** " the thing states with an almost jovial tone. He leans against the wall and crosses his arm. " **Sorry about hurtin' you back there. I was just a little angry that Scorpion has not yet** _ **killed you!**_ " He lunged forward slightly, his eyes narrowing.

I took a step back. The thing looked to take a few deep breaths before straightening out. " **Sorry. But yes, you should be dead and you're not. That in it of itself is surprising. Last person who lasted this long… well, I'm sure you already saw him.** "

The body from before…

"How'd he die?"

" **I don't know the specifics** " he replies, circling around him. " **I don't pay much attention to the maggots in this place. Granted, he did catch my eye a while ago, but he made the** _ **stupid**_ **idea of making a last stand! I kinda guessed what happened to him after Scorpion caught up to him** " He doubled over and laughed. " **Oh, but you! You've been actively trying to get the hell out of here! And making a legitimate effort! Hell, I wouldn't be surprised if you made it to the top.** "

Okay, this guy is getting annoying. I pull out the sword just a little bit. " **What did I say about fighting?** " he shouts, slapping his forehead in exasperation. " **Besides, you couldn't hit me if you tried.** "

Alright then. Sounds like a terrible idea.

The sword swings down at the creature. Okay, so, it's not the most graceful, could be easily blocked by any swordsman who has a lick of training with the thing, and I would be killed instantly. But it's good enough against this thing. At least, that's what I had hoped when I swung the bastard as hard as I could.

Turns out, he's intangible. What, don't know what that means? Well, when someone… screw it, look it up on Google, I don't have the patience right now to explain. Anyway, the sword goes right through him, not connecting to anything until it slams into the ground.

I just stare at it in shock for a good few seconds. Okay. Kenshi never had the opportunity to use this bad boy on the man on fire, or Scorpion, apparently. But, considering that he threw him around and collapsed a ceiling on top of him, I'm assuming it would've worked… in the same way the bullets did, but whatever.

Here, the sword just passed completely through him. I look up at the creature's face, who looked to be smiling. I could only tell that because I could make out some of the wrinkles near his eyes. Barely.

He shook his head, offered a chuckle, before stating, " **Do you really think it'd be** _ **that**_ **easy, Kermit?** " He put his finger to his lips and looked up at the ceiling. " **You've got that little, I don't know, spunk? I'm gonna go with spunk. You got that little spunk to you that I like. But, make no mistake. Once I get here, I'm going to kill you.** "

Okay, first of all, Kermit? What the hell? Second of all, "When you get here?"

" **Hmm? Oh, right. You see, the reason you can't touch me and I can't touch you is that I'm simply an… astral projection? Yeah, sure. Sounds fancier that way. I'm actually about two floors down.** " He walks over to Sub-Zero and pats his head. " **Before you ask, I'm not technically stopping time. I'm simply freezing him in place for the time being. I'll let you two go on your way in a second, I just want to tell you something.** "

"Let me tell you something first," I state. After a brief struggle, I'm able to put the sword back in its scabbard. It's harder than it looks, okay? "You can tell your freaky ass demons and your idiotic living building to go _fuck yourselves!"_

I can tell he's amused by this. He tilts his head before shaking it again. " **I would. Truly, honestly, scout's honor! But the thing is, I'm not the head honcho. I'm more of an advisor to the big guy. Granted, I do most of the paperwork, so I might as well be the main guy, but, well, the red-tape and all that junk. It'll drive you nuts.** "

"Then who is in charge?"

" **Oh, now, if I told you that, where would the surprise be? Now, about that thing** _ **I**_ **wanted to tell you. You only got a few more floors left before you can** _ **potentially**_ **escape.** "

Well then. That's… actually rather helpful. But, the question that is begging to be asked is, "Why tell me this? You clearly don't want me to win."

" **Quite the contrary, Kermit,** " he counters, again using that stupid name. It's here and now I vow to kill him. The 'Kermit' thing isn't the only reason, mind you. " **I'm rooting for you. Do you realize how boring constantly winning is? I, or rather,** _ **we**_ **need a new challenge and buddy-boy, you are the one to give us that.** "

"What about him?" I point back to Sub-Zero, who's still frozen by whatever freaky ass magic this guy is using.

" **You'll need to ask him about that, I'm sure he's got plenty of stories there.** "

"What?" I turn to look back at Sub-Zero, who begins moving again. I realize my mistake and turn back to face the creature, only to find him gone. I look around, hoping to find him, but he's long gone at this point.

Sub-Zero stumbles forward, asking, "What the hell just happened?"

A punch to the face stumbles him backwards this time. He clutches his nose, shouting, "Kurtis, what the hell?!"

"You have some serious explaining to do," I hiss. He tries to get up, but I say, "I will drop you again, so start talking."

"What are you talking about?"

"I just had a heart to heart with one of those things, and he says you know something. So start talking."

He looked to the ground momentarily before sighing. "Alright." He looks me in the eyes again. "What do you want to know?"

"He said _I've_ lasted the longest, but when I mentioned you, he said you had some 'stories'. His words not mine," I tell him, since I wouldn't have been that jovial.

"I'm going to be honest. I haven't told you everything about me."

"You haven't told us anything about you."

"That's true, but there's a very good reason." He gets to his feet, brushing himself off, and stands tall. "I'm… I'm one of those things."

…

"Is there anything else you want to mention, or is that the last bombshell?"


	20. Chapter 20

"About three years ago, give or take a couple months, I was brought here much like you two were," Sub-Zero begins. We've moved into a separate room now, hopefully avoiding that damn demon so we can have a small chit-chat.

"I wasn't a cop, granted, but I had training. Skills. I was an assassin. And I was sent to kill someone, a real nasty piece of work called… what was his name? 'Rain,' or something? Anyway, when I get here, I find out he's been kidnapped and I'm out of a job. I go back to the place I was holding up at, an apartment complex. I'm betting it's the same place you and Kenshi were taken from."

I nod. "You mentioned back when we first met that shadow guy. The one who took us. That's who I talked to. How do you know him?"

"That's not important." He's really on the defensive now. The bastard knows something important. Like he's protecting someone.

"Bullshit," I bluntly point out. "You know something about him, I want to know what it is."

Sub-Zero rubs the back of his neck again before nodding. "Alright, fine. He is… was… my brother."

"Okay, that's like five revelations in the past five minutes, on top of the fact that Kenshi's dead, so please, take it slowly."

"This happened about seven years ago, I want to say."

"Around the time Kenshi first came to New York," I mention off-handedly. Ah, those were the days. Back when it was simple, or simpler at least. When the weirdest thing was some guy with a blindfold who could give any swordsman alive a run for his money and potentially win.

"I guess, but that has nothing to do with this. Anyway, when I got back to my apartment, he was there. My brother."

"What's his name?"

"Why is that important?" He shoulder droop in exasperation, almost like he doesn't want to tell me. Seriously, I get the whole brother love, but my God. Protecting him this much?  
"Because I would very much like referring to him as something other than 'shadow guy' in my internal monologues."

"Your what?"

"Never mind. Name, now."

"He called himself Saibot when I met him again. He brought me here, and I was... When they catch you they do things to you."

"Like?"

He visibly shuddered. Wow. What did they do to this guy? "I don't want to talk about that. But they turned me into this… monster. After you kill enough people, they give you your old body back, but scrub the memories. At least, that's what they do now."

"Who's 'they?'" I can't help but ask. I'm not gonna lie, I'm all around confused at where this narrative is going, so I'm just going to ask the simple questions.

"Don't know. Only one message goes through your mind. 'Kill everything.'"

I rub my five-o'clock shadow. I absently think about how much I need a shave, but put that thought away for later. Need to think about the here and now. "Okay, so, whatever these guys are, they want you and those other things out there to kill anyone that is dropped in here. But why are you able to fight it?"

"That's a story for a different time, but… wait…"

"What is it?" Now I'm on edge. Again. Then again, what doesn't at this point? I swear, I might start shooting at the shadows. Oh, right. I don't have my gun. And that might actually be a valid thing to shoot at.

"We're not alone."

A very loud roar echoed throughout the entire floor. It was familiar. "You know," I comment. "I was beginning to think he forgot about us."

"Let's go. I'll finish the story later," Sub-Zero replies, quickly thrusting his hand out and forming a wall of ice. "That won't hold him for long."

I see the ice is already starting to melt. "That won't hold him at all. Go, go!"

Just as we take three steps away from the ice wall, it explodes. A chunk slams into my shoulder. I hold back a scream, merely hissing, but even then I stumble forward. I fall to one knee, but Sub-Zero grabs my arm and hoisted me up. We keep on running, but I'm stumbling a little bit.

I turn my head to look back at the man on fire, and I swear I see Saibot behind him waving at me. I'm tempted to throw up the one-fingered salute, but it would just be a waste of time. With nothing else to do, I turn my head back and continue to bolt down the hallway.

The man on fire does something that I was not expecting whatsoever. He starts sprinting. His leg move with what seem to be the power of pistons as he closes in on us. The fire around him seems to burn brighter, and fire starts burning from his eyes.

The only thing I can be thankful for? He doesn't go after me.

He tackles Sub-Zero to the ground and starts raining down blows on the back of his head. Sub-Zero elbows the man on fire off of his, causing the creature to slide into the wall.

It seems both of them forgot about me, as Sub-Zero dives towards him without warning. The man on fire had already gotten to his feet. It dodged to the left and sent a fireball at Sub-Zero. He avoided it and returned an ice ball of his own.

I learned something.

As awesome as a fight this would be, I had to get out of here. I got back to my feet and ran away. Just as I was about to turn a corner, I decided to take a quick peek at what was happening.

Sub-Zero ducked to avoid a kick, ramming the man on fire back with a shoulder. He grabbed an arm and broke it at the elbow. It unnerved me that the creature didn't make a sound, only backhanding Sub-Zero.

Alright, that's enough fight for me. I continue on my way. I meet a familiar face.

" **What, you're just going to leave the fight of the century? Come on, get a camera, put it on YouTube, and you'll have an instant success."** Saibot rubs his chin. " **On second thought, don't. Put it on Pay-Per-View. Make the big bucks."**

I ignore him.

I turn another corner and come face to face again. " **Look, I know you think you know what you're doing, but you really don't. You have no idea where you're going, don't you?"**

I'll admit, it's getting really hard to ignore the bastard, but I have too. " **I'll give you a hint. Take a left, than a right, than a left, and finally another right. You'll find your way to the next floor soon enough."**

I skid to a stop and glare at him. I can't trust him, I know that. But if it's possible that I could get out of here…

I take a left, and hear his voice say, " **Run, Kermit. You're running out of time."**

I really hate that guy.


	21. Chapter 21

I make the final turn. I hear Saibot walk up behind me and say, " **Wow, you actually made it. I'm impressed."** He leans against the wall, crossing his arms. " **You must be so proud of yourself."**

"It's through there?" I ask. I ball my hands into fists, my fingernails cutting into my skin. The sting is almost unbearable, but I need something to distract me from all the broken bones and internal bleeding. I have no idea how I'm going to make it through this one.

" **Of course. I would never lie, Kermit. Just omit certain truths.** "

I walk past him and throw open the door. And the familiar portal from before stares back at me. It's a slightly different color than before, but otherwise looks the same. It doesn't look promising, but I feel as though I no longer have any choice whatsoever. God, it feels like so much shit has happened in the past hour alone.

Oh, wait. It has.

Damn.

I take a step closer to the portal when Saibot states, " **One more thing."**

"What?"

" **You'll probably find another creature or two. Might want to learn how to swing that sword decently."**  
I respond with a single-fingered salute and take a step into the portal.

Now, many people think that teleporting would be a wondrous experience. To go from one place to another in the blink of an eye? That has to be amazing, right? Yeah, no. Not at all. It feels like you're torn apart piece by piece and put together haphazardly.

To put it bluntly, it hurts like a son of a bitch.

Also, add to the fact that I am dropped from five feet on my face, I'm just a mess right about about. I lay there for a few second, groaning gently to myself. I clutch my sides and get to my hands and knees.

Alright. I'm on the next floor.

Yippie.

So… time to get up. I painfully, slowly get to my feet. Every bone in my body is shouting at me to not do it, to just stay down and die. But I'm not dying here. I won't. I can't.

After much protesting, I'm up. I stumble over to the wall for support and take a few deep breaths. I then take in my surround… Holy shit.

The walls and floors are covered in blood. More than the lower floors. The single, swinging light-bulb, the only source of light, was threatening to shut off with its constant flickering. It plunges me into darkness every couple of seconds.

A loud humming sound that won't go away fills my hearing. It makes me want to claw my ears off just to stop it. I take another few steps forward, but then I hear something.

A very loud moan.

Picture it with me, if you will.

You're watching your favorite horror movie. Let's say a zombie movie. Picture yourself in that movie, but instead you're in a bloodied hospital.

That's what it feels like.

I slam myself as flush as I can against the wall, my breathing rather ragged right about now. That kind of hurt, not gonna lie. But better that than dead. I slowly make my way towards the corner, making sure to stay as flush as I can against the wall. When I get there, I take a quick peek.

I'm shocked to find someone else.

It looks like a person. Plain, bloodied white shirt and a part of blue jeans. Nothing stands out about him. I look around, thinking this is some kind of trap. Well, it most certainly is, but a new ally would help since I abandoned my last one and…

Without further hesitation, I call out, "Hey, buddy. You alright?"

He stops.

Something goes through my mind, about the way he stops I mean. Like a deer just heard a stick break in the forest. At first I think the guy's about to run away, just due to instinct alone. But I am in for quite the rude awakening.

He whips around, his eyes glowing a dull yellow before hollowing at me. He thrashes his arm around and bum-rushes me. He tackles me to the ground and just starts wailing.

Stubborn little bastard hits pretty hard, and he won't. Stop. Screaming.

I catch one of his arms before pulling back a fist and sending it right into his face. He flies right onto his back and skids a little. A thought goes through my head. I can finally fight something.

I stomp over to the guy, who gets up and tries to do the rush again. I step to the side, grab his shirt as he rushes me, and slam him to the ground.

I grab an arm and break it at the humerus, and stomping on the other. He tries to flail at me some more, but I break his collarbone and sternum with a powerful kick. He's not exactly done moving, he's still tossing his head about, trying to bite at me.

Time to let loose some pent up aggression.

One of my fists is sent into his face. As soon as I lift it, he's screaming again. So another fist slams into his cheek. And then another. And another. And another.

At this point I'm just sending blow after blow into the guy. His skull is already fractured, I realize, by the sixth punch, but I don't stop. I just keep punching.

The sound of brains being squished fills my ears. It means nothing at this point.

His entire head is pretty much destroyed when I stop. A few deep breath later and I raise my fist again.

" **Okay, I'll admit, I'm a little scared now."**

God damn it.

" **Maybe he was just protecting himself,"** Saibot suggests, walking up to me and the corpse that used to be a man. " **He thought you were an attacker which, let's face it, you were."**

"You're so full of shit," I reply, getting to my feet and taking my gloves off. They got really bloody. "He attacked me first, unprovoked, and I doubt he was human at this point. You saw his eyes, I'm assuming."

He throws up his hands. " **Can't get anything past you, can I? Well, remember what I said about there being more up on this floor? Well, if you honestly thought that was going to be all of it?"**

He put his hands on his knees like he was scolding a small child. " **You are sorely mistaken. That was rather loud. Probably lured a couple here. Run, unless you want to die. Run!"**

I take a few steps back from the demon. "Why should I listen to you?" I almost shout.

" **Run!"** He continues screaming. " **Run, Kermit. Run! Run like your life depends on it! 'Cause, let's face it,** _ **it kind of does!"**_

He bursts out into laughter as I sprint in the opposite direction. That's when I hear to rest of the footfalls and the groans and the howling.

This is not going to be a fun time.


	22. Chapter 22

The moans, the screams, they're everywhere.

And something tells me, even though I hope it's not true, that it's not all in my head.

I stumble backwards looking at the shadows darting across the walls. Sweat has drenched my forehead and eyebrows, and my hand is instinctively reaching for my hip.

Everything in my brain is tell me to pull out the gun, fire madly at the walls, hope to hit something, anything. But, no. Not only do I not have any ammunition, I don't even have my gun. Just a sword that I have no idea how to use. And the pouches. Can't forget the pouches.

I grab the nearest stretcher and pull it out in the middle of the hallway and stumble back further. I fall flat on my ass after tripping over something. I promise I didn't let out a rather pathetic sound when I fell.

I'm sprawled out on my back. A part of me just wants to stay here, on the floor, and let the inevitable uncertainty of death take hold of me and comfort me. But no. I have no idea what happens when someone dies here, especially on this floor. That thing was a person once. Something changed him.

A nearby moan elicits an immediate response from my body. I rolled over and got to my feet, but not before turning to see what I tripped over.

Half a body. Not even a dried body. It's fresh. Only an hour or two old. There were more people here than I thought, I can't help but think to myself. After a second or two of vomit threatening to leave my mouth, I finally get back on my two feet. Something flashes across my vision.

A chill runs up and down my spine.

I stand stock still for a second before walking away into the adjacent hallway. I walk towards the nearest door and try the handle. Locked. Wait, someone actually decided it would be a good idea to keep these things locked? Weird.

Taking a couple steps back, I get ready to kick the door down when I hear the moans start up again. Okay, so maybe kick down a door and making a bunch of noise would not be such a good idea. The noise would draw those things towards me, and my continuous footfalls probably do that enough. I check each every door in the hallway, and when the last one won't budge, I slam my right hand into the wall.

My knuckles bleed from the impact as my back rose and fell with every breath I took. That was a stupid move. I could feel the building kind of rumble.

I know I couldn't have possibly done any lasting damage with just that one, admittedly weak, punch. But a smile crossed on my face. "That hurt, you son of a bitch?" I ask, laughing. "Good."

Enough of that. Have to keep moving. Can't be cornered. If I get cornered, I die. And that's terrible. I chuckle to myself at my clever in-joke.

Anyway, I'm on the move when I step in something. It sounded like… a puddle? I looked down to see a large pool of blood on the floor. How did I not notice that before? What really caught my attention was that the puddle was still growing. I couldn't help but be curious. Well, it's not like everything isn't out to kill me anyway, might as well face the next challenge head on.

I follow the trail and I turn a corner. I guess Sub-Zero was right. This building is alive. There's a deep gash on the wall opposite to me, and the amount of blood that is pouring from it is far more than any human could possibly have. At this point, the blood was up to my ankles. Movement was slowing down for me, but I could hopefully run away.

I gave the gash a good look. It was pulsating quickly now. Disgusting.

I turn to take a left, when something catches my attention. Two figures across the hall stumbled into view. They looked to be infected with the same thing that that first guy had. I took a few steps back and turned around. Such a damn shame, then, that three of them blocked off the hallway from that end too. I looked to the only remaining hall, but that was blocked off too.

It was only one, but this one seemed different. Its posture was tall and sure. His eyes glowed a bright red instead of the dull yellow of the others. A chill ran up and down my spine, as I couldn't help but take a few steps back.

My hands automatically reach for anything that could be used as a potential weapon. Now, here's the part where you might be thinking to yourself, "Stryker, why the hell aren't you using Kenshi's sword?" Hush your pretty little faces, I'll get to that.

But I grab a nearby lamp and hiss, "Come on." It's a small voice, but I made sure to fill it with extra amounts of venom. "Come on!" I raise the lamp. "You want a piece of me?! Well?! What are you waiting for?! Come on!"

The red eyed one raised its hand, pointed at me, and growled. That seemed to spur the others into action, as they all bull rushed me. I was able to smash the lamp onto the nearest one, and stab some of the shards into another's eye. But that wasn't enough.

They poured onto me. There was no strategy, no finesse. Just pure rage. Red-Eyes still hadn't made a move. It just stood there, watching everything play out.

I smash a fist against the closest infected face. That brings about that sweet sound of bone being crushed. Always brings a smile to my face. As I drew my fist back again, I did it a little too quick for the next poor bastard's face. My elbow smashed into its nose.

Even though I'm breaking bones, it's not doing anything. I feel like they're ignoring the blows, fighting through the pain. I know that feeling. It's not fun. But everybody's got their limits. And I've just reached mine.

The blows stop breaking bones. More and more of these infected people start climbing on me, until I can see nothing but a mass of flesh. The last thing I see before they completely cover me is Red-Eyes. And behind him, Saibot waves at me.

Oh, God.

This can't be the end.

No!

No...

...

...

...

* * *

 **A/N:** Ugh. Hate doing these things.

Anyway, quick update on this little fic. First of all, it's easily my most reviewed fic on this site to date. That feels great, since I do think it's my best. Overall, it has gone in a much different direction than I originally intended, but I don't think that's necessarily a bad thing.

Second, I not only have the next chapter done, but every chapter up until chapter 27. Why do I say this?

Finally, because after I post chapter 27, I'm taking a little break from Trapped.

Don't worry, it's not going away. I'm just busy working on school (SENIOR YEAR, BABY!) and other fics that have taken my interest. I just need to step away from Mortal Kombat. I plan to start writing chapter 28 sometime in late-December, so it'll be awhile. This fic should (finally) be done sometime next year. After that, there will be a year long break until Mortal Kombat: Finality will come out. I already have ten chapters written for that, but I've hit a wall. So don't expect that until 2018. And don't expect it to be fully complete until, oh, I don't know... 2020? Yeah, I'm not leaving the Rebirth AU for a long time.

But, if you enjoy my writings and want to see more, I will be posting other stuff during the next two years or so. Just follow me and you will be notified when I post a chapter. Anyway, until December (probably January since I take a month to write each chapter), expect a chapter every week.

Alright. That went on far longer than I originally intended.

Spino, out.


	23. Chapter 23

NO!

I pull out Kenshi's sword and plunge the blade first into the nearest creature's head. It struggles a bit before going limp. I throw it off me before slicing downwards on another. Had I not been fighting to literally survive, I would've taken the time to admire how sharp this blade it.

One clean slide and it's head is already cut in half vertically. Sharp blade.

Pushing that body off me, I muster up all of my strength and put all my weight forward. I break through the mass of bodies and stab the sword into the pile and start hacking. It gets harder and harder to swing it down, probably because it keeps getting stuck in them, but I don't slow down.

Blood splashes on my face, but I ignore it. The crimson liquid stains my clothes, but I don't care. I'm just hacking away like a madman. I try not to think about it, but I feel the corners of my lips twitch up. Just tell yourself that it's just because you're relieving stress. You don't enjoy this.

That's what I keep telling myself, anyway. I'd rather not think about it.

After several minutes of hacking, I let the sword drop to the ground. My shoulders rise and fall quickly and I realize just how much energy that took. My left hand starts to hurt and I groan. Gonna have to retape it, this time without help. I turn to face Red-Eyes, who's just standing there. I can't even tell if he's mad. Or if he's breathing. Wouldn't surprise me if he wasn't.

But then it started laughing. _Laughing_. My blood boiled. I raised the sword and shouted, "Stop laughing!" Foolishly, I decided to throw it at him.

He knocks it out of the way before rushing me. I think to myself, "Oh, shit." And that's when I get thrown into the wall. It cracked it pretty heavily, eliciting a groan from both my body and the building.

His boney hands wrap about my neck and begin to squeeze. My oxygen intake is slowly being cut off. The gasps for breaths are barely making a sound now, and I can tell Red-Eyes was smiling.

Without thinking, I reach down, pull something off my belt and slam it into his right eye. He screams as he reaches to block off the blood flow. I give him no quarter as one of my fists slam into his nose. I realize too late that it's my bad hand.

But I don't concern myself with that. The adrenaline is back, shockingly. That being said, I am being mindful enough to use my other fist to beat him back. Shocking myself, I deliver a sidekick to him, sending my heel into his face. I struggle to keep my balance, but I'm able to. Have to admit, I'm impressed with myself.

Before Red-Eyes can do anything, I pick up the object I dropped and smash it across his face. It broke in half, one part falling the ground. That attack was enough to knock him to the ground as he began to slowly crawl away.

Now my mind is on autopilot. I don't feel anything when I reach down and grab Kenshi's sword. I can't hear my footsteps as I move towards Red-Eyes. And I sure as hell don't feel the jolt when I shoved the sword into the back of his neck.

I twist and I pull and I stab repeatedly.

Once I'm sure he's dead, I pull the blade out of the creature's neck before holding the sword in front of me. I'm sure my eyes are wide as I look around the hallway. With the gash still gushing blood from the wall, plus my butchering of these things, There's very little of this place left not covered in blood. Including myself. I take some steps back, nearly slipping in the blood, but stay up.

I reach for the nearest door and try its handle. It's unlocked.

I'm in the door, shut it, then moved to the other side of the room. I lean against the wall and slide down, shaking violently now. I let the sword drop onto the floor as I grab hold of my hair and start crying.

" **Wow, if I'd known I'd get a show, I would've brought the popcorn."**

I don't say anything. I let go of my hair and just look at my hands. Those things you just murdered… they were people once too, right? Like you. But they were only murderers because they were turned into that against their will. You are fully human. Sure, you were about to die. But did that give you the right to just kill them in cold blood?

" **Oh, God. You're having one of those internal debates going on it your head right now, aren't you?"**

"What do you want?" I ask, with little effort in my voice. I've just stopped caring at this point. He wants to show up and berate me at every turn? Fine. Let him. He's not even here right now.

" **That's what we need to talk about,"** Saibot replied, before holding up his hand and correcting himself. " **Sorry,** _ **you**_ **need to talk about."**

One can't help but raise an eyebrow at that phrasing, myself included. "Why are you here?"

" **Clearly, I don't need to be the one to bring up the fact that you pretty much slaughtered those people."** He moved his head towards the door. " **In fact, you looked like you enjoyed it."**

No, I tell myself. I didn't. I _have_ to believe that. Otherwise, I'm no better than these things. But, for some reason, my mouth can't form the words to deny this. It opens, but it's not making any sounds.

Do I enjoy this? Am I really as bloodthirsty as these things? Is this me going crazy?

I glance up towards Saibot, who is just smiling at me. He knows what's going on inside my head. And he is loving every single minute of this. What I wouldn't give to deck him across the face?

" **Having troubles in your mind? Thinking that you're not like them, like us, but you know you are,"** Saibot began spouting, getting to his feet. " **The only reason you haven't found out you love this so much is because you haven't been given the opportunity. Hell, if you were locked in here not even a day earlier, you already would've been thigh deep in blood."**

Saibot's expression quickly shifted.

" **Oh, wait. You have."**

Without thinking twice, I shot to my feet and throw myself at him. I pass right through him, of course, and crash to the floor.

" **If you want a fight that badly, I guess I just have to hurry up and get here, huh?"** The only thing I could do is crawl to the wall and prop myself up. I turned onto my back and looked him in the eye. " **Don't worry."** He poked me in the head. " **I'll be here in, oh, ten… fifteen minutes? It's amazing the headway one makes with no one holding you down."**

"Screw you," I hiss, clutching my side. A rib probably cracked again. Wouldn't surprise me.

Saibot smirked beneath his mask. " **Nice to see you're making a verbal effort. But make no mistake. When I get here…"** He knelt down to my level, his face only inches from mine. " **...you're going to die."**

And with that, he disappeared. I was left all alone, staring at the opposite wall, thinking about what he said.


	24. Chapter 24

Was I really as bloodthirsty as Saibot said?

Did I really enjoy the slaughter I just committed?

And if I didn't… why did I do it? Why was I smiling while doing?

I pull on my hair, threatening to rip it clean off my head.

Emotions are swirling through my head.

Fear, at becoming like these things. I slaughtered them with a smile on my face. They weren't human anymore, I knew that. I'm not naive. So I shouldn't feel this bad. The only way to kill those things was quick and brutally. But I continued even after they were dead, like I was afraid I would die if I didn't stop.

Anger, at Sabiot, for putting these damn thoughts in my head. He's not even physically here, and yet here I am, pierced by the things that… whatever he is has said. At the start of this morning… wait… How long have I been here? God, I can't even remember. Well, at the start of that day, I was sure of who I was.

Now?

Not so much.

I shouldn't be thinking about this right now. I should be moving my ass towards the next floor, and then the next, before finally getting out of this place. I couldn't help but spit a little, noting that blood still came out instead of actual spit.

That's so not good.

Internal bleeding, probably, although a cut lip isn't entirely out of the question. But the possibility of that being the only reason for it? Yeah, it's a bit slim.

I groggily get to my feet, stumbling a little. However, through a combination of sheer willpower and dumb luck, I'm able to stay on my feet. Amazingly. Using the wall as support, I reach over to the door knob and grab hold of it.

Unfortunately, it takes a lot of effort to turn. Okay, I could really use some adrenaline right now, but I have no idea what the bottle looks like.

After a few minutes of fidgeting, I'm able to turn the knob and push the door open. I stumble forward into the opposite wall, just barely able to keep myself upright. A few more heavy breaths later and I'm on the move.

I have to use the wall for support. If I don't, I fall. There's no other way to put it. If I fall, I don't get back up. If I don't get up, I die. Simple as that.

I turn to the right. I have no idea where I'm going anymore. It was by pure chance that I stumbled upon the last couple portals… still can't believe that portals are used instead of stairs.

Blood feels like it's pouring out of a wound in my side. Something tells me it's reopened from before. I know for a fact some ribs are damaged again. My hand reaches to cover the wound in my side, maybe to stop the bloodflow. Actually, yeah. That's exactly the reason.

I'm feeling lightheaded, but I can't pass out. I can't. I…

 _BOOM!_

The hell...?

I looked down at my hand, but aside from the dried blood, there was nothing. Was I imagining the blood? Just to make sure, I take a quick peek. It's covered in blood, but of the dried variety. How did that not reopen?

I decide it doesn't matter. That explosion sounds awfully familiar, and before I know, on the other side of this very long hallway, the man on fire appears.

Oh, that's not good. That must mean Sub-Zero didn't make it. Hopefully that's not the case, but you never know.

The creature and I just stare at each other for a moment. Then a fireball formed in his hand and he threw it at me. I dropped to the floor as it flew over me. The fire burned my back slightly, but it wasn't enough to keep me down. I jumped up to my feet and began running the opposite direction.

Another fireball flew past me, thankfully missing. It burned a hole into the wall, though. Thinking quickly, I made a quick turn to the left and grabbed a door handle. Maybe this'll work-

 _OWOWOWOWOWOW!_

What the hell? Why is it so hot?

It wouldn't be wise to reach for it again, so I try another one. Results are the same as before. Seriously, what the hell is going on?!

" **Having trouble, Kurt?"** Saibot asks me from behind.

Ignore him. It'll make it a lot easier for you, Stryker. I take a deep breath, but it's interrupted by the man on fire turn the corner and slamming his hand on the ground. I raise an eyebrow, but that's when I notice fire forming around my feet. So I jump out of the way.

In my former place was a gigantic geyser of fire. The hot flames lick the ceiling for just a moment before it disappeared altogether. I barely reacted, just staring at it slack-jawed.

That's when the crashing of footsteps were brought to my attention. I was grabbed by my collar and thrown into a door. It broke the instant my body collided with it. I was splayed across the ground as the creature stepped closer.

Thinking quickly, I could only crawl away. What this thing was, he seemed to take delight in my struggling. I bet if he wasn't on fire he'd be smiling

Think, Kurt, think. There has to be… Hello? What is this?

I grab the fire extinguisher off it's hinges, pull the nozzle towards the creature, and let the foam loose. It sprays the man on fire as he thrashes. The fire all around him goes out. I finally get a good look at him.

Although there's not much to look at.

All he is is a burned husk, looking more like a corpse then an actual human being. His uniform is predominantly yellow, like I mentioned, and his face is masked. The skin around is heavily burned, and when his eyes do opening, it's just pure white.

I don't let up for an instant. Once the extinguisher runs dry, I smack the man on fire across the face. What I see surprises me.

Not only do I get quite a reaction, it's not of anger; it's pain. He lets out a shout before crashing on the floor. I lift the extinguisher up again before driving it down one last time.

It didn't kill him. No way it could. But he was down long enough for me to slip by him and run.

I just keep running. My legs feel like they're on fire. Same with my chest. And arms. Everything, really.

But I can't stop. Have to get out.

I turn a corner before being met with Saibot. He opens his mouth, but I stop him from speaking.

"Look, I don't have nearly enough time for your bullshit, Saibot! So either you tell me where I can find the next portal or _get out of my way!_ "

His eyes are narrowed to simple slits. " **No need to shout. You only have to ask politely."**

He throws a thump behind him. " **Fourth door on the right. I think you've just about earned something nice happening to you."**

I take a deep breath and pass through him. " **Oh, and Stryker?"** I stop. " **Your death just got a lot more painful."**

I give him a chuckle. "I'll be ready when when you are."

Without waiting another moment, I walked over to the door and walk into it.


	25. Chapter 25

I step out of the portal onto the next floor.

It's funny. Compared to the floor downstairs, this one is in pristine condition. Probably because very few, if anybody, has made it here. Couldn't help but. Feel a sense of pride well up inside me.

I take another few steps into the hall. Nothing's come out to kill me yet, so I can celebrate that. I glance back at the portal before it closes. No turning back now. Only one floor remained.

A grin flashes across my face. I'm feeling pretty good about myself. But…

I look down.

Sub-Zero is still down there, somewhere. I don't know where. Every fibre of my being is telling me to run. Barrel past any potential threat in my way and get the hell out of here.

 **"You're sooooo close now,"** Saibot's voice spoke in my head. I couldn't help but agree. **"Clear this floor and the next, and you're home. Hell, you might make it before I get here."**

All true statements. Yet…

"What about Sub-Zero?"

Saibot stops. He scoffs. **"What _about_ Sub-Zero? What's he ever done for you to warrant this concern?"**

"He saved my life," I tell him. Multiple times, in fact, but I don't mention that fact. Seems kind of pointless.

 **"So what?"** He shakes his head before walking up to me and placing a hand around me. **"In this place, it's every man for himself. He had his chance to escape with you, but he didn't take it. Now he's either dead or back in hiding. I haven't found him at any rate."**

I shake my head. "Am I just supposed to leave him behind?"

 **"Yes! That's exactly what you're supposed to do!"** He says it like it's the most obvious answer to this solution. Which… yeah, it probably is. I'll be honest, it would be so easy, but I just can't shake the guilt I would feel if I just left him. I've lost one friend. No, I wouldn't consider Sub-Zero a 'friend'. But it just feels wrong to leave him behind.

"Where is he?" I ask, staring directly at Saibot for the first time.

 **"Do you not have ears? I don't know,"** he reminds me. He walks over to a door and leans on the frame. **"Besides, I wouldn't be worried about him. He's survived here for, what, years? I doubt it would be that easy to kill that son of a bitch. So you worry about getting yourself out of here. After all…"** He steps closer to me, a sinister grin clearly planted on his face. **"Isn't that what Kenshi wanted you to do?"**

Without thinking twice, I spit a loogie in his direction. It passes right through him, landing on the wall, but he gets the idea. But the grin doesn't disappear. Instead, he starts laughing. **"You are adorable when you get angry, you know that?"**

And, without thinking, I throw a punch. It passes through him, of course, and it slams directly into the wall behind him. I swear it splits a couple knuckles. So obviously the correct thing to do is punch it a couple more times. Saibot had disappeared while I continue to punch the wall.

 **"You keep doing that, you'll break your other hand."**

"Will you shut up?!" I shout directly in his face. "I can't stand you! You are annoying, you are irritating, you have done nothing to help or hinder me, so I have to ask, why are you here?! Just to annoy me?! Playing some mind games?! Trying to be a master manipulator or some bullshit like that? 'Look at me, I'm Saibot! I get my jollies trying to mentally break some guy who doesn't even know why he's here!'"

Saibot just looks at me silently.

"To be honest, I'm actually looking forward to when you show up and kill me! That way, I won't have to be constantly annoyed by just your presence and your unending prattle. So, how about you do me a favor, and _fuck. Off_!"

He just stood there. He wasn't moving. His eyes were as thin as slits, staring into my soul. Then he stepped forward. I couldn't help but flinch and step back. He walked straight up to me. **"I'd suggest you deal with your visitor."**

He then disappeared. I looked dumbly ahead, having no idea what the hell he was talking about. And then I heard that roar. Great. That guy. Didn't I just bash his skull in with a fire extinguisher.

I threw myself behind a desk as a fireball slammed into it. Turns out, a desk wasn't the best thing to seek cover behind. The impact sent the table into me, sending me to the ground. It hurt like hell as I could feel several more bones breaking.

I hold my side, feeling as though something got broken there. I looked up to see the man on fire stalking towards me, fire now back in his eyes. I look for another fire extinguisher, and I deflate when I see none. There's gotta be something. There's the broken apart desk. I could pick up a piece of that to fight back. No, that's stupid. If bullets couldn't stop him, these won't either.

He's walking towards me now. I crawl away as fast as I could, which wasn't very. There's nothing… I'm dead. I can't believe this is how it ends. Facing a fiery demon, barely able to stand at this point, with no means of defending myself. Can't say it's not unique. I can certainly think of worse ways to die.

Wait… something catches my eyes. The sprinkler system, above. I look to my left. Fire alarm. Oh, please let this work. I muster up as much strength as I have left, throwing myself self to it. I grab hold and pull. The alarms go off. The sprinklers activate.

Water drops down on both of us. My hair and body is almost immediately drenched. I have to spit some out of my mouth before I turn to look at my enemy. He's in pain. His hands are clutching his head, as he begins snarling and growling. He tries to step forward, but all he does is fall into the wall to the side. However, I notice the fire is going out. My plan is actually working.

After about thirty seconds, which feels like an eternity, the man on fire is now just a man. He looks at his hands, not believing what just happened. He then jerks his head backs towards me.

I can't believe I'm about to do this.

"Please…" I say, using the wall as support. "You don't have to do this." I wrack my brain. Saibot called him something when we first met. What was it? "Scorpion, right?" He tilts his head. "Let me pass. Please. You're not bound by that son of a bitch."

For a moment, it looks like he's considering it. Then he lets out a roar and clutches his head. Again. Something is happening. I have no idea what. Scorpion then goes silent and stands at his full height.

Then he cracks his knuckles.

Oh, shit.

He charges at me so fast I barely have enough time to dodge out of the way. His fist smashes into the wall, splintering the wood. My eyes go wide. Okay, water just puts the fire out. He can still break me like a Kit-Kat. Good to know.

I grab the nearest object to me and chuck it. The vase smashes across his back, some flower petals stick to him. Scorpion barely flinches, just rips his arm free and stomps towards me. My hands clamoring for anything and everything. But, no, there's nothing. He grabs me by the collar and smashes me into the wall.

A small cough escapes my mouth as his hand grabs me again. A punch across the face nearly knocks me out. It certainly hurts like a bitch. Another punch makes my vision go all fuzzy. I can taste the blood now. I think I'm missing a few more teeth now. Yay.

Before my eyes completely shut, Scorpion let me go. I fall to the ground in a rather pathetic heap, curling up in a ball. I clutch my head and look up, seeing Sub-Zero grappling with him.

I notice the sprinklers have stopped before a small smile cross my face, just as Sub-Zero sends a right hook across Scorpion's jaw.

Then I black out.

Again.


	26. Chapter 26

That was the plan, at least. But when an ice ball slams down on the ground directly next to you? That wakes you up a bit. I roll away before I get the dubious honor of being frozen. Some smoke enters my lungs, causing me to have one hell of a coughing fit. I struggle to get to my feet, but I'm there.

And I have to avoid another ice ball almost immediately. It's not the most gracious of dodges. I stagger, crash into the wall, and clutch my injured side. I'm in no fit shape to get into any kind of fight, but I trudge on anyway, like a good soldier. Now…

What the hell can this good soldier do?

Running away is out of the question. I'm so close, Saibot's hot on my heels, and Sub-Zero would offer up decent protection against that. Hopefully. Probably. I have no clue, but it's better than nothing. Okay, Stryker. What's the plan?

I gaze upon the war that is going on in front of me. Scorpion grabs Sub-Zero by the neck and hoists him up. The ceiling is low enough so that his head smacks into it. After that, he's thrown to the side. I have to ask, how the hell is this thing putting up a better fight without his powers? Okay, so I didn't quite see the fights beforehand, but the question still stands.

Scorpion climbs on top of the fallen Sub-Zero and just sends fist after fist into his face. Without thinking, I throw myself on his back. I jab my thumb into his right eye, applying as much pressure on his neck as I can. Which isn't much, admittedly. But I am able to gouge his eye out. The pure white eyeball is now ground up. Even if he survives, Scorpion sure as hell isn't going to heal from that.

Or maybe he will. Bullets did jackshit against him, so maybe he can heal an eyeball. Doesn't stop me from reaching over to his other eye and trying to do that same. At this point, he's recovered enough to throw me off with a roar erupting from his lungs. I crash down on my back as a ripple of pain erupts throughout me, but on pure instinct I roll to the left, just barely missing a fist that breaks through the floor.

That would've done far more damage to my head than I care to imagine. Just as I'm clear, Sub-Zero lunges over me and tackles Scorpion to the ground. I get up as quickly as I can, which, admittedly, isn't as fast as I'd like. But I'm on my feet as Scorpion places his on Sub-Zero's chest and pushes him off. I reach down, grab my gun, and and point it at him.

*click*

Wait… it's empty. Shit. Time to improvise.

I grab the barrel and smack the handle across the back of the demon's head. I do that another time, the cracking of skull filling the air. Golden blood flies out of a couple cuts on his face, splashing me and the wall. Just as I'm about to bring the gun down again, He grabs my wrists and applies some pressure.

It causes my grip on the gun to loosen. It falls to the ground, as Scorpion's one remaining eye starts to glow again. My eyes go wide as only one thought goes through my head.

...fuck…

Thank God for Sub-Zero. An iceball just barely misses my head and slams into Scorpion's. He lets go of my wrist and covers his eye. When he opens it again, it's back to being simple white. So there is some good new. I use my good hand to punch him in the ribs. I can't tell if that did anything to him or not, but it sure as hell hurt me.

Scorpion backhands me into the wall hard enough for me to go through it and land in the next room. It was no different than any of the others actually. I pushed a piece of rubble off of me, before I spat out some blood. Damn it. Not again.

I glanced back and saw Sub-Zero blocking a punch and delivering one of his own. He pushed Scorpion away and kicked him in the chest. A grin crossed my face as I get to my feet. A cough escaped my lips as the grin left. I stretched my shoulder, as the pain travels up and down my arm. That can not be a good sign.

Scorpion had recovered from the kick and caught the next punch in with his hand. He sent a ferocious jab into Sub-Zero's neck before grabbing his neck and slamming his head into Sub-Zero's. I could see the cut on his forehead now, as it was staining his hood and pouring down his forehead. In his eyes was nothing but hate and anger. I'm not sure towards who. Scorpion… or me?

That look was wiped off his face as Scorpion backhanded the ice master to the ground. Alright, time to step in. Think, Stryker. Look for anything that you could use. A piece of rubble caught my eye. I picked it up and rushed Scorpion. And to my pleasure, I slam it down on the back of his head.

It does next to no damage.

Without even looking at me, he sends an elbow into mut gut before smashing my face with the back of his head. I let out a small shout before toppling to the ground. Scorpion whips around, his eye now glowing a dim, dark yellow. He opens his hand and a fireball forms in it. I can't help but let out an, "Oh, shit," before scooting away from him.

The fireball was fired at me, but just barely missing my arm. Scorpion sends another one, this time it lands between my legs. He fires another that lands just above my head. That's when I realize this thing is toying with me.

And I can't do a damn thing to stop him.

He stops moving as he hold up his hand, a fireball forming once again. This time, however, it's a bit bigger than the one before. He raises it above his head, and I have little down he's going to kill me.

That's why we have this little thing called the cavalry.

A sword made out of ice pierces through Scorpion's chest, twisting and jerking. The fireball dissipates in the air as the fire in his eyes dims. He grabs hold of the sword and breaks the tip off. Does this guy not even feel it? _Can_ he feeling anything? The demon whips around, the rest of the sword still in him, but stops when Sub-Zero stabs him with another one. He plunged it deeper into the demon's chest, a snarl clearly forming on his face. I can see it even through his mask.

Scorpion let loose a growl before grabbing hold of Sub-Zero's mask and ripping it off. That makes him freeze in place. I finally get to see what his face look like.

He's… old.

Short, white hair sits on his head, and the same color is on his beard. A scar runs down his right eye, the color having faded to blue. The right eye had faded into a foggy white where the pupil once was, but the left was still a blazing, soul piercing blue. And the wrinkles on his face only made him look angrier.

Scorpion seemed to be just as shocked as I was. He didn't move, just held the mask in his hand.

"Hanzo, if you can still hear me," Sub-Zero said, forming a knife and stabbing it into Scorpion's neck. I was speechless. This was the first time I've seen legitimate anger oozing from him. I couldn't tell if it was with Scorpion or himself. And who the hell was 'Hanzo?' "I am sorry that I can not help you. But now, you are free."

Scorpion's back was towards me. I couldn't tell what he was doing, aside from shaking uncontrollably. "You can finally rest."

Sub-Zero pulled the knife out of Scorpion's throat, and let it drop to the ground. He stepped out of the way as Scorpion took a few tentative steps.

He pulled down the hood and took off his mask.

Like I said before, his back was to me, so I can't accurately describe him. All I know is that he had black hair that fell to his shoulders. I heard him say, "Kuai." He began turning around, but Sub-Zero stepped in front of me. "...thank you…"

I heard him fall to the ground. Is… is he dead? Did that actually kill him? Was he finally out of my hair? I scrambled to my feet to get a good look at the body. He fell face first, so I still couldn't see his face. But…

"Is he…?" I tentatively ask, looking at the now unmasked Sub-Zero. He nodded. "Good."

"It wasn't his fault."

I couldn't help but balk at the audacity of Sub-Zero saying that. "What the hell are you talking about?"

He shook his head. "He wasn't always Scorpion. I knew him as Hanzo Hasashi."

I can't help but interrupt him. "Is there any other stunning revelations to offer me?"

Sub-Zero glares at me before continuing. "He was… a decent man. Until my brother killed him."

"...Saibot killed him?"

"He wasn't Saibot at the time. He was Bi-Han. After he died, Hanzo was dragged from the depths of hell and put here, to forever live out his torment. Scorpion became a manifestation, forever patrolling these halls. That was nearly forty years ago."

I put the pieces together myself. "...You've been here a lot longer than two years, haven't you?"

He turns to face me. He looks old. And tired. Like he could just curl up and die at any minute without a care in the world. "Kurtis… you've been… an ally. But this is where we part ways."

"Sub-Zero, I'm not leaving you again," I say, trying to plead with him.

He sighs. He then motions to himself. "Look at me," he asks. "I'm old. I have nowhere to go. I have nothing left to do. I came here to free Hanzo. Now I'm done."

"What about your brother?"

"Bi-Han has always been a monster," Sub-Zero snaps. "That thing he's turned into? That's not some twisted form, that is, and always will be, my brother. Plain and simple."

" **Kuai, you don't really mean that do you?"**

That puts us both on guard. I take out Kenshi's sword, Sub-Zero gets into a weird looking fighting stance. Saibot is standing there, leaning against the wall, clearly pleased with himself. " **I'm hurt."**

This is so not going to be good.


	27. Chapter 27

" **I come all the way here, following you two, and you don't even have the common courtesy to at least** _ **pretend**_ **you're happy to see your brother?"**

Me and Sub-Zero are side by side, my hands going for the sword on my back, Sub-Zero's arms glowing blue. A sense of dread came crashing down on the both of us.

All of a sudden I started to regret all those snarky comments I said to him. Okay, maybe not regret, as he most definitely deserved them. But now I understood what he was talking about. Just being in this thing's presence was awe-inspiring.

The room felt a lot colder, as if Saibot was sucking in all the warmth into himself. A shiver ran up and down my spine. The hairs on my arms and the back of my neck were standing on end. My left eye twitched slightly, my breathing became ragged, but the most piercing feeling was the _cold_.

It was overwhelming, finding it's way through every orifice of my body and settling in in the deepest, darkest depths of my being. Every part of me wished that Scorpion would wake back up and roast me, or the building would set on fire, or-

No. It's just Saibot getting into your skin, Kurt. You will get through this. You have to.

Saibot looked between the two of us, he white eyes seeming to shift from Sub-Zero to me and back again. He took a step forward. We both took a step back. That amused him, as he chuckled deeply. " **You've gotten old, Sub-Zero. Getting a little grey."**

The cryomancer… when the hell did I learn that word? Whatever. The cryomancer snarled, his fists curling up. "Saibot. Let him through." He steps forward. "He has no part in this."

" **Well, actually, he does,"** Saibot replied, holding his arms out. He steps closer, the coldness gripping me tighter. It's invasive, almost infesting. I don't like it, and yet my body is becoming calmer. He fists are becoming looser, my eyes are getting heavy. " **Do you remember the last person who made it this far?"**

Sub-Zero glances towards the body of Scorpion. "I do."

" **So you know what happens now?"** Saibot asks. The smirk on his face is rather clear by his tone of voice. Of all the creatures I have met so far, including the thing that killed my friend, I hate him most of all. And now I can't help but let my arms fall.

"Wh-What's happening?" I fall to my knees.

Oh, god, I can barely breathe. I…

My throat… gotta open my throat. Only way to breathe…

"Stryker!"

No… give me back my hand… need to… breathe…

"Kurt, it's in your imagination. You can do this. Just breathe."

" **Oh, don't sugar-coat it. He's gonna suffocate if you don't let him go, Subby."**

"Shut up!" There was a blue light and then air started returning to my lungs. I drop to my knees and started coughing as my vision returned. I looked up to see that Saibot had been thrown back by some sort for ice blast. "Stryker, get up. We need to-AGH!"

Tentacles wrapped around his chest and threw him into the wall. Saibot walked forward, not showing any sign of damage. Even the Man on Fire-sorry, Scorpion-showed some effect. " _ **Sit down**_ **, little brother. I need to have a talk with your new friend."**

"Fuck you!" I shout, taking out my pistol and throwing it at this monster. Saibot slaps it away, a smirk seeming to morph onto his face. I take out Kenshi's sword and hold it in front of me.

That just makes him laugh. " **And what do you suppose you'll do with that?"** Saibot cracked his knuckles. " **You're no swordsman. I can think of thirteen different ways to get that sword out of your hands and kill you at the same time. With only one arm."**

Now it's my turn to smirk. "But it makes for excellent distractions."

" **Distractions? What-?"**

Sub-Zero grabbed him from behind, trying to crush his own brother's neck with his forearm. Saibot clawed at my friend, trying to get free. For once, he wasn't talking. Only growling what I can only assume to be obscenities at him. Without any further thought, I rush up and smash my elbow into Saibot's face and begin throwing a flurry of punches into his midsection.

I bet you're wondering why I'm not using the sword. I can't wield it at all, so I have no idea if I'm going to hit Sub-Zero. So, I put it back in the scabbarrd, with a little difficulty, and use what I know. My fists. Or rather fist. My left hand is still kind of screwed up. Right now, I'm trying to hit any vital organs this guy might have, but it doesn't seem to be working.

Saibot grabs my face and kind of pushes me away. And by "kind of", I mean he threw me across the goddamn hallway, but he didn't seem to put much effort into it. In order to avoid getting his eyes clawed out, Sub-Zero throws Saibot into the nearest wall. It crumples under the demon's weight, but he's already up and moving by the time the rubble hits the ground.

He grabs Sub-Zero by the neck and hoists him up. He says something to him, but I can't tell what. I, on the other hand, am already up and rushing to fight. Unlike last time, Sub-Zero is far enough away. I have the sword in hand and make a mad swing. To my, and mostly likely Saibot's, disbelief, the sword connects, leaving a large cut across his back. It bleeds a dark purple, oozing from the wound.

Saibot screams out in pain, bringing a pleased grin to my face. It quickly goes away, however, when he backhands me to the ground. " **You little shit! You think you can beat me?!"** He kicks me across the floor and into the wall. " **I have killed Gods! You are nothing but a maggot in comparison! No, not even a maggot. You are the world's smallest bacteria, threatening a God."**

Another kicked into my midsection. Ribs are being crushed. " **When I'm through with you, you'll be begging me to kill you. And you know what?"** And yet another kick. " **I'm just about done helping you."** But that distraction allowed Sub-Zero to grab onto Saibot's head with both hands and start working his magic.

A blue glow surrounds Saibot's head as he falls to one knee. He starts writhing in pain, probably from the cold and the pain that comes with it. Sub-Zero looks at me and shouts, "Go!"

"What? No!" I shake my head. "You can't handle him alone, you'll die!"

"I know!" Saibot's head at this point was completely entombed in ice, but he was still struggling, albeit much weaker than before. Sub-Zero looks back at the sturggling form of his brother, and let's loose an even stronger stream of ice. "I told you, there isn't anything out there for me, but if I can save one person, then I'll happily lay down my life. Now get the hell out of here!"

My eyes shift between him and Saibot. I'm useless in this fight, I understand, but there's a much better chance if I stay. But…

Tears start falling down my cheeks. "Don't you dare die! I expect to see you on the other side, understand?! I don't want to lose another friend."

Sub-Zero looks at me with a mix of shock and gratefulness. Then his face shifts into one of pure determination and strengthens his ice beam.

I give one last look before I sprint in the opposite direction. I make a hard right, rushing to whatever direction feels right. I have no idea where the stairwell is, if there even is one. I probably have to go through another damn portal.

I really do not like them, in case you haven't noticed.

I can hear shouting and a philosophical back and forth. Not entirely sure what they're saying, but I guarantee it's not a fun subject. Then I hear a scream.

It belongs to Sub-Zero.

Don't focus on the right now, just get to the portal. Left, right, then left again. I find a door and throw it open. The portal is glowing a sickly red color. I can't help but wince. It's different than every other time. It seems to cut into my very soul. I can't help but take a step back.

" **Stryker! Come out, come out, wherever you are!"**

Shit. That must mean he won. Damn it, Sub-Zero. Why did you have to be a hero? I take a deep breath and take a step into the portal.

* * *

 **A/N:** Okay, welp. This is it. The penultimate chapter. Kind of. I only plan to have another full length chapter after this and then an epilogue. Maybe. I guess that all depends on where next chapter goes.

Anyway, like I said a few chapters ago, I'm taking a tiny break from this fic. I'll start writing next month, so expect the next chapter sometime in January.

Remember to leave a review and tell me what you think.

Spino, out.


	28. Chapter 28

Blood drips onto the floor. A cough escapes my lips.

I can barely stay on my feet. All the energy seems to have drained from me. The wound on my side opened up again, and I can barely feel my left hand. What little feeling there is, it's pretty much exclusively pain. My legs are shaking, barely able to contain my weight. Only a matter of time now before I fall to the ground and start crawling. I use the wall as support, blood smearing on the wall.

Thankfully, the hallway has so far been completely straight. No doors, no turns, just a straight line. That should be cause for concern, as something dreadful will probably jump out at me, but death sounds good right about now. I just want to get out of here first. To be able to die in my own city. Or at least not here. I don't want my body perverted by Saibot, which is inevitably what would happen.

There's no end to this damn hallway, is there? I was tricked by Saibot to live the rest of my short life walking. Got to hand it to the bastard; I'm just stupid enough to have believed him.

Just as I'm about to give up and just collapse, I notice something. It's barely there, but I see a light. Dim, barely illuminating much of anything, but it's bright enough to see. My hobbled pace quickens, although that bring great pain to my already battered body. A new rush of adrenaline surges through my body and I'm able to push off the walk and limp forward much quicker than before. Blood continues to drip onto the floor, trailing behind me, but I'm past the point of caring. All I need to do is get to that light. That's my way out. It has to be.

My breathing becomes heavier. It's becoming harder to stay on my feet. That short burst of hope-fueled adrenaline is wearing thin on me. I was sincerely hoping I could make it. I'm almost there, though. I just need to get there. Only a few more steps and—

Something slices my thigh. It doesn't go very deep, but it's enough to make me collapse. I fall forward, but I'm immediately crawling. I look behind me to see two, blank white eyes approaching me. Saibot. He beat Sub-Zero. I hope that bastard is still alive. But he's stomping towards me, a fire in his eyes. Even with only seeing a bare outline of him, I can tell he intends to kill me.

So, I've come this far just to die? I clawed and shot my way towards this moment, only to die at arm's length from getting out of here? No. Fuck that. I crawl forward, ignoring to footsteps rapidly approaching me.

" **Stryker, Stryker, Stryker,"** Saibot mocked, stopping next to me. **"Why do you insist on making things difficult for yourself?"**

Ignore him, Stryker. You're almost there, I tell myself. I just keep dragging myself forward. I can hear Saibot laughing at me, but I don't bother to listen to what he says after that. I just keep dragging myself forward. Saibot gets my attention by kicking me in the ribs. The pain rushes through my ribs as I clutch my side. I'm flat on my stomach as Saibot circles me like a hawk before kneeling by my head. He gives it a flick before chuckling.

" **You got farther than I would've thought, kid. I have to admit, I was rooting for you. A harrowing journey of pain and loss, death and survival, and getting out of terrible situations by the skin of your teeth."** Saibot patted me on the head. **"Until now, that is. I've always liked stories that end in bitter defeat. So close, and yet… so far."**

I try to say something snarky, hoping to tell him where he can shove his stupid metaphor, but all that comes out is blood. I can barely move. Oh, God, I can't believe it. I'm going to die. This is it. I try to crawl forwards with my fingers, but Saibot jumps to his feet and slams a foot on my broken hand.

The bones in my hand has turned into powder at this point as I let loose a mangled cry. Saibot decides that I haven't suffered enough, and grinds his heel on my hand. I can't help but scream in agony as tears begin leaking from my eyes. Saibot throws his head back and cackles, crossing his arms in front of his chest. He lifts his foot off my hand only to slam it back down. The pain is unbearable at this point. I can't stand it.

Tears stream down my face. Blood is flying out of my mouth with every scream and my hand is useless at pretty much everything. Saibot finally seems to get bored crushing my hand and takes a step back. I'm sure this was not his way of showing me some honorable compassion, but rather he has some other sick, twisted torture to dole out. My unbroken hand clenches into a fist and I try to get to my feet, only for Saibot to kick the side of my head. My head snaps to the side as I slam back to the ground.

" **Look at you go,"** Saibot chuckled, placing his foot on my head and grinding it in. **"So much determination. That's good. Keep fighting! March, MARCH ON! You little soldier. I could end it, you know. Your pain, your misery, your agony, I could end it all. I could heal you. In exchange for your eternal servitude. It sounds bad, I know, but you'll get used to it."**

I try to say, "Fuck you." But I only get out, "Fu—" before I cough and blood flies out of my mouth.

Saibot kicks me onto my back and slams his foot down on my chest. He hisses, **"Listen, you little piece of shit. I'm trying to help you. You humans are all the same. That determination is admirable, but it's not going to save you. Guess what, Kurt? You're going to die. Right here. I could easily shove my foot through your chest with no effort. But you have a choice here. You can live."**

I grabbed onto his foot and tried to shove it off. I was too weak though. He cackled before stomping on my chest. **"Look at you! Beaten and gasping for air. And yet, you still struggle. That's it, that's the Stryker I've come to known."** He takes his foot off me, allowing me to breathe, before he crouches down and grabs hold of my chin. He looks me in the eye and grins. **"I'll enjoy ripping the soul from your body and making you my own personal minion. You'll be so much better than Scorpion.** "

He lets go before stepping away, his back facing the entrance we both came from. **"You and I are going to have a blast for the rest of eternity, Kurt."** His arm turns into a long tendril, which slips into three others. **"Don't worry. This'll only hurt for the rest of your life."**

My eyes burn with hatred towards this creature, this monster in front of me. I've made peace with the fact that I'm going to die. I realized that when Kenshi died. He's more skilled, stronger, and can lift shit with his mind. If he couldn't survive, than neither can I. So I shift my weight and us my good hand to throw up a one-fingered salute. He grinned at me before raising the tendrils for the killing blow. I grimaced and waited.

It would have been the death of me. Would have, as out of nowhere, an ice sword pierces Saibot from behind. We both freeze as Saibot looks down at the sword. We both look behind him to see Sub-Zero, still alive, and a scowl on his face. He shoved the sword in deeper into his older brother's chest, black blood spraying out of the wound. Saibot grabs hold of the blade, snapping it in two, before turning to face his brother.

Fortunately for me, Sub-Zero doesn't seem to care what Saibot might have to say. All he offers in a frozen punch to the face. He follows this up with a flurry of blows to the head. He grabs ahold of Saibot's head and slams it into the wall. Before this shadow demon can react, Sub-Zero unleashes an ice beam to freeze Saibot's head in place. Saibot wasted no time and beating the ice apart, but Sub-Zero had already moved on to help me up.

He picked me up and threw my arm over his shoulder. I hobbled forward with his aid, but I was fading fast. I look behind us to see Saibot nearly free from the ice. I try to say something to Sub-Zero, but he has already turned around and started to form an ice wall. I can hear Saibot break free and begin screaming.

" **KUUUUAAAAAIIIII!"**

"He's pissed," I chuckle.

Sub-Zero's scowl deepens. "That's a three foot thick wall of ice. That's not going to hold him."

I don't even bother to think up of a reply. "How are you alive?" I ask, running out of both breath and blood.

"He didn't kill me," Sub-Zero replied quickly. "Once I was down for more than ten seconds, he ran off after you."

"Hehe," I chuckled. "You took your time finding me."

He didn't reply. He only grinned at me as we got closer to the light. We walked into a large, circular room. It was barren of everything but a swirling, white portal. We both stopped in front of it, before he said, "That's your way home."

" **KUAI! I'M GOING TO RIP YOU APART!"**

Sub-Zero instructed, "Just walk through that portal. You'll wake up somewhere near where he grabbed you."

"How do you know this?"

"You learn things when you turn into one of his puppets," Sub-Zero replied plainly. His hand glowed on my chest briefly before he announced, "That should dull the pain enough for you to walk through there yourself."

He lets me go and I wobble in place for a moment before I'm able to stand. I turn to face him for a moment before I nod at him and limp forward. I heard Saibot break down the wall of ice.

" **Kuai. You should've stayed dead."**

"That man is not going to be your puppet!"

" **We'll find out about that."**

I heard them charge each other. I don't bother to listen to any more of their banter. I'm about a foot away from the portal when I feel something cold against my back. Something cold slams into my back and I'm thrown into the portal. It hurts like hell, but it causes me to tumble through the portal. I'm able to catch a glimpse of the battle.

Saibot had wrapped Sub-Zero in his three tendrils. One was wrapped around his arm, another around his chest, and another around his neck. Sub-Zero had his hand held out towards me. He must have shot an ice ball in my direction. In the end, I'm guessing that's what saved me. It was cold, at first. But then I tumbled through the portal.

The last thing I heard from this godforsaken place was Saibot shouting, **"NOOOOOO!"**

I made it. I actually made it!


	29. Chapter 29

The screeching of tires filled the air. A dog barked in the distance. People chattered non-stop.

I sat in my hospital bed, wires attached to my body. I took a deep breath and stared out the window. I saw people going about their day, cars driving by.

My left hand still hurt. I thought it would go away. They had to cut it off, after all. I look down at the bandaged stump, tears welling up in my eyes. I rubbed the bridge of my nose and sighed.

From what Sonya told me, I was gone for a month before being found in a dumpster bleeding out. I was rushed to the hospital where they amputated my left hand and put as much blood into my body as they could. I slipped into a coma, and the doctors weren't even sure if I was going to wake up.

That was about two months ago. I woke up three weeks ago. I still wasn't ready to be released quite yet. I was still incredibly groggy, always wanting to just get some more sleep. The doctors' encouraged it, but I couldn't. Not because I didn't want to. I just couldn't sleep. When I do, I have nightmares, I wake up in a cold sweat, and that's only after an hour and a half of sleep passes.

I want to go back into my coma. At least I wasn't having these nightmares then. I picked up the glass of water next to me and drank some. Water was nice. I looked around and couldn't help but laugh.

It was a hospital that almost killed me, and now one is bringing me back from the brink of death. I don't know if that's irony or not, but it sure as hell is funny.

I heard a knock on the door. "Come in," I told whoever it was behind the door. I didn't want to see anyone, but that would raise more red flags to whoever was behind the door.

The doorknob turned and it creaked open. Sonya walked in with a defeated look in her face. "Kurt."

"Sonya," I reply. I try to shift my weight, but pain shoots up and down my body. I'm in no condition to take a step, much less be released. I look over to her, and she just sighs. That sigh… there's meaning behind it. I'm not sure what. But it's there.

"How you holding up?" Sonya asks, walking further into the room and taking a seat next to me.

"Fine," I lie. "So what are you doing here?"

"I need to talk to you about Kenshi."

Ah. That. Funny thing about that. I can barely remember a damn thing about that night. Or month, I suppose. I can only remember a few key details. We were trapped in a hospital, something was trying to kill us, Kenshi died, there was a lot fire, and then… shadows. A black face with pure white eyes. I don't know what it means though.

"What happened during that month?"

My eye start to well up. I rub the bridge of my nose before replying, "I don't know. I can't remember anything about it."

Sonya places a hand on my shoulder and says, "You have to try. Your situation looks terrible. You went missing for a month along with your partner, and then you show up half dead in a dumpster. You have to tell me something."

I grasp at the thoughts swimming in my head. "There was… a hospital," I tell her, which she already knows. "Something was hunting us… Fire… I saw it, I touched it, but… I don't remember what happened. I can't… I can't remember. And Kenshi… I was there. I held his hand as he passed on. He gave me… his sword."

A thought came to me. I bolted upright, despite the pain in my body telling me to lay down. Sonya got up to try to push me back down, but I was not going to do so until I sat back down.

"Sento. He gave me Sento. Where is it?"

"Don't worry, Jax held onto it. He said he recognized the design, God knows how. From what I remember, Kenshi was very strict with who saw that blade. He'll give it back once you're out of here."

I was put at a bit of ease. I laid back down, finally sensing that pain that had shot through my body. I grimaced and clutched my chest. The pain was not getting any easier. Only when I was full of morphine and other assorted painkillers could I even hope to get some rest. But those don't take away from this feeling I've got. Like I did something terrible. But I don't know what it is.

Sonya got out of her seat and laid a hand on my shoulder. "Get some rest, Stryker. You need it."

I nod, hearing her silent acknowledgement. Whenever a cop is in the hospital, they usually get a, "See you on the force," or something like that. That's what it's like here, anyway. Not this time. She didn't say anything like that. She knew that I wasn't coming back.

It would be difficult enough with my left hand. I did not feel like the same person I was three months ago. I don't want to talk to anyone, not even Sonya, who has been here for me while I recovered. I watch her leave the room as I lean back and sigh. I rubbed my eyes and looked out the window when I noticed something.

I saw a familiar face on the streets. An old man with a large, jagged scar running across his face. The reason I picked him out amongst a crowd was because he was looking at my window. He wore a brown, leather jacket, a pair of jeans, and a cap. He tilted the bill of his hat towards me before walking on. I couldn't help but feel a sense of joy because of this, but I couldn't fathom why.

I just kept following the man until he left my vision. I had no idea who he was. But something told me I could trust him. That I can call him a friend. I looked down at my stump. Maybe I could get better. I was never going back to the force. But, with enough work, I can live a halfway decent life.

I close my eyes, and for the first time in a while, I sleep peacefully.

* * *

 **A/N:** And finally, after over a year and a half, it is complete.

Fun fact, I had an alternate ending planned for this. It was going to be a much darker ending, but I decided that it was needlessly cruel. So, hope you enjoyed this little treat of a story.

My next fic will either be that Metal Gear story or a Godzilla story. Once one of those are finished, expect Mortal Kombat: Finality, the final installment of the MKRebirth Trilogy.

Spino, out.


End file.
